Station Square Saga
by KnuxfanEO
Summary: The gang is off to Station Square to get Dimitri for using Knuckles. They are befriended by a group of misfit superheroes, but even with their 'help', can they stop Dimitri's latest plot? Sequel to a sequel. Conclusion is up!
1. ENTER THE RAVAGERS

ENTER THE RAVAGERS

**Author's Note**: Hey! I'm back, and with a vengence! (Well, sort of.) Anyway, this is my third story, so if you havn't read "Break Up, Break Down" and "Eclipse: The Legendary Echidna"(in that order) then turn back now and do so. Otherwise, things may not make sense to you. This story will have some of my own characters, which belong to **ME**!!!****So no shistin', ya hear? lol. Sorry. I'm weird. Anyways, on with the show!

"Is this all necessary?" Sonic asked Sally as he looked at himself in the mirror. "Stop complaining. You look good," she said. Sonic was wearing an orange short sleeved, button-down shirt and blue jeans. "I don't know. I'm not used to so much clothing," Sonic said as he pulled at the collar of his shirt. "That's because you never wear any," Sally replied. "Do we really have to go to all this trouble?" Sonic asked. Sally sighed in annoyance and said, "Yes. We have to blend in with the crowd, so stop complaining and get used to it!" Sally had put on a pink T-shirt and white bell-bottoms. "The other's are waiting," she said as she led him out of his hut.

Mighty was wearing a blue football jersey and black cargo pants with a red, backwards ball cap on his head. Espio wore are red shirt and brown shorts. Vector wore a white wife-beater and loose jeans, held up with a belt. Tails, his arm and shoulder still in a sling, wore a gray sweatshirt and blue shorts. Antoine wore a bright green, long-sleeved shirt and white dress pants. Ray was wearing brown khakis and a pine green, short sleeved shirt. Rotor was sporting a white Lord of the Power Rings T-shirt and black sweatpants. Amy wore a pink shirt with long, white sleeves and blue jeans. Rouge wore a black T-shirt and black shorts. Bunnie still wore her pink tube top, but wore a brown jacket and pants to cover her robotic appendages. Julie-Su wore a black tank top and purple pants.

"Well then...uhh, where's red?" Sonic asked as he looked around. "He went off into the woods 'bout twenty minutes ago. We called after 'im, but he didn't answer," Vector replied. "There he is," Amy said as Knuckles walked out of the woods. He was wearing a sleeveless black shirt tucked into blue jeans, which were secured with his brown belt embedded with the guiding star gem. He also had his grandfather Hawking's hat on, and he wore black sunglasses. "Sup, Knux?" Mighty said cheerfully as he walked up to his friend with his open hand in the air, hoping for a high five. However, Knuckles didn't even look up at him, and he was left hanging. "You look good," Mighty said as he playfully punched Knuckles' shoulder, but still got no word from his friend. Mighty stared in silence for a moment, and finally said, "Aren't you gonna talk to me anymore?" Still silence. Mighty sighed and hugged his friend, who still stood silently. "It's alright, man. I'm here for you," he said, trying to comfort his friend. "Thanks," Knuckles finally whispered.

The King rode up on his horse, escorted by the royal guard. "All preparations have been made. Your presence will not be known. Your ship is registered to Station Square, so the Legion will not be able to find you," the King said. They all walked to pack their belongings in the jet, passing crowds of pedestrians as they went. Knuckles could hear them talking about him, saying how evil and heartless he was. Everyone glanced over and saw the crowds giving Knuckles death-glares, which greatly angered them. Within the hour, their supplies were packed and they were off for Station Square. They only intended to stay a few days, so they only packed the necessities. The plan was to get there, blend in, gather information, and take down Dimitri before their presence was discovered. They would simply find a hotel and get a few rooms while they were there.

They were in Station Square by nightfall. The city was much like Echidnapolis, only with fewer echidnas. It was a mixed population. Mostly "humans", as they preferred to be called, and all sorts of other creatures. Tall buildings, bright lights, large crowds. This was indeed a city. They walked down the street, and no one seemed to pay any notice to them. "See? We blend right in," Sally said to Sonic, who grumbled. As they were walking, Knuckles' head shot up and he stopped walking. They all paused and looked at him, until he began to run down the street until he cut into an alley. They all sped after him to find that he had stopped, and was in a fighting position. "What's up, Knux?" Espio said. Knuckles didn't answer, which irritated Sonic. "Alright! Enough with this silent crap!" Sonic said as he began to walk over to Knuckles. Knuckles turned around and threw a punch towards Sonic, but his hand grabbed another hand that was phasing through the wall next to Sonic. "What the...?" Sonic said as Knuckles pulled a Dark Legionnaire out of the wall and threw him across the alley. Before anyone could react to this, the shadows in the alley began to move, and about a dozen Legionnaires surrounded them.

"Master Dimitri bids you welcome. He has been expecting you. You can come willingly, or by force," a legionnaire said menacingly. "There's only twelve of you! We can take this!" Sonic said mockingly, but was silenced when the legionnaire began to laugh. "You don't get it. We are Dimitri's elite shadow troops. We can phase into shadows and evade all of your attacks. Resistance is-""YEEEEEEEEEEE..." someone yelled, interrupting the legionnaire. "Who was that?" Amy asked. "Oh, no. Not them again!" a legionnaire yelled. "HAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" the voice finished as eight figures jumped down from the rooftops and took the legionnaires by surprise. A few short seconds later, the legionnaires melted down into shadows and crept away. "Nice! That's seven groups tonight! Pound up, man!" one of them said as he collided his fist with another one of the figures.

The one that had spoken was wearing some kind of armored suit. It was like a blue body suit with a red chest plate, red wrist cuffs, and a red helmet. The helmet had a long, horizontal green visor on it, and was topped off with a beanie, oddly enough. His companion wore no mask at all. He wore a white body suit with red shoulders, a blue torso, and a yellow belt. Blue gloves and boots covered his hands and feet. He had a blue headband on, which was tied behind his head as the ends hung behind him. He appeared to be young, with black, spiky hair with one curl in the middle of his hairline, soft blue eyes, and a reassuring smile.

"Nice job, bro," another one said to him. This one was a bit shorter, with long, messy, combed back black hair that went down to above his shoulders. He wore basically the same outfit as the spike-haired guy, except the colors were darker and a pair of goggles replaced the headband. In his hands he held two triangular blades that extended from his mid-forearm to about a foot ahead of his fists. "They don't train them like they used to," one of them said. This one wore a green karate uniform, held with a karate belt, black lightweight shoes and wrist cuffs, and a long purple scarf. On his head was a mask that resembled a serpent, his face being the black, open mouth with two teeth hanging before his eyes. "Hey! It's not them! We're just too tough!" another threw in. This one wore a white body suit. An ice-blue mask covered his face, and his blonde bowl cut hair flowed freely above it. His gloves and boots shared the same blue color, and starting from his shoulders, down to where his waist met his belt, a large triangle had the same blue color as well.

"You are such a show off," one of them sighed. He wore a dark violet cloak, with a golden pendant holding it together below his neck. The area of his face above his nose was concealed in shadow, but his mouth and black goatee were visible. "Naw! He's just a hot head," yet another one said. His outfit had very little imagination to it. A blue body suit with a blue mask to hide his face. "Let's move on! The night is still young and I'm just getting warmed up!" the last one said. His one wore a dark gray cloak with tattered ends. His whole face was concealed in blackness. All that could be seen were his red eyes with his cat-like pupils, and a pentagon-shaped mouthpiece with three vertical slits in it.

"Uhhh...hello?" Sally said, causing them all to turn to them. "Shoot! I forgot all about them! Are you okay?" the one in plain blue yelled. "Yeah. Um..." Julie-Su began, but was still confused, along with the others, about their sudden visitors. "You all new in town?" one of them asked. "Yeah! We're...here on business," Rouge answered. "Bit young for a business trip, but I'm down with that," the spike-haired one said. "You got names?" another asked. "Yeah," Sally said as she introduced herself, then everyone but one. "And who's the red guy?" the violet-cloaked one asked. "...Red. My name's Red," Knuckles answered, not wanting to give out his real name. "So what did those guys want with a group of kids like you?" one asked. "Well...we...uhhh..." Sally began, until she was cut off with, "It's alright. You can tell us. We can offer you protection. Besides, even if it were some 'big secret', who would ever believe eight guys in crazy colored outfits anyway?" the armored one asked them They all looked at each other. "The Legion already knows who we are somehow, and he does have a point...so I guess it wouldn't hurt," Sally finally said. She turned back to their visitors and said, "I am Princess Sally Acorn, and we are representatives from the Kingdom of Acorn." The costumed companions stared as their eyes widened in surprise. "...Holy crap," one of them finally said.

"We are the Freedom Fighters, and they are the Chaotix," Sally said, pointing out who was from what group. "Well surely you know who we are," the armored guy said as he outstretched his arms in opposite directions. There was a brief silence, until Rotor said, "Can't say we do." The armored guy's shoulders sagged as he said, "Surely you jest? If not, then I shall tell you! We are the sultans of salvation, the poobahs of peace, the...doers of good...things, when the world is in danger of being endangered, we are there to meet the challenge! We are..."

"Captain Independence..." The spiky haired guy stepped up. "Call me Cap."

"Quick Freeze..." The bowl-haired guy gave them a peace sign with his hand. "Freezie for short."

"Viper Ninja..." The Karate guy bowed. "Vipes."

"Forest Centipede..." The violet cloak nodded his head. "F.C."

"Morph Man..." The blue guy waved his hand. "Morph."

"Sword Swipe, Cap's younger brother..." The duel blade-bearing guy clanged his blades together. "Swiper"

"Grim Reaper..." The dark figure just stood there and said, "Grim."

"And I'm the Mecha DJ...DJ for short. And together, we are...the Ravagers!" DJ said, once again outstretching his arms as if to present merchandise before a crowd of buyers.

They all stared curiously at the Ravagers, until Mighty said, "Okay... but what are you?" The Ravagers paused and looked at each other. "I dunno. Super heroes, I guess," DJ said. "Yeah, I don't really know. I never thought about it," Swiper threw in. "Wait...you don't even know what you are?" Tails asked. "Well...technically we **_are_** super heroes, but on the other hand...we're wanted criminals," Cap said. "How does that work?" Bunnie asked. "What's the lowdown, DJ?" Vipes said as he turned to DJ. "Let's see...as of today, we're wanted for vigilantism, escaping arrest, road rage, driving an unregistered vehicle, flying an unregistered aircraft in public airspace, disturbing the peace, and property damage...which amounts to twelve thousand, seven hundred and forty two dollars...and thirty three cents." "Well...that's...quite a record," Julie-Su said. "I know. So what business are you here about?" F.C. asked. "Vell, ve ah here to fight ze Dark Legion," Antoine said. "I didn't pick up all of that, but did you say...the Dark Legion?" DJ said in a creepy voice, until he said "No need to worry! We got 'em covered!" in his normal voice. "We have inside information," Rouge boasted. "We do too!" Morph said. "Like w-what?" Ray asked. "Well...they're echidnas...they're techno geeks...they have grim's sense of fashion...and..." Freezie said as he leaned over to DJ and whispered "What else do we know?" DJ whispered something in his ear that made him smirk as he looked back at them. "And we can handle them, no problem!" "Well, we have a score to settle," Vector said, glancing over at Knuckles, who remained silent. "And we know a lot more about them," Julie-Su commented. "Well we know this city better, so nah!" Freezie said. "Cool it, Freezie. Ravagers, team huddle," Cap said as they formed a circle and whispered amongst themselves.

"What do you think they're talkin' about?" Sally asked Sonic. "Probably whether we're trustable or not," Sonic answered. "So it's decided...we'll get one large cheese pizza, and one with pepperoni," DJ said, as they all nodded in agreement. "Wait! What about them?" Swiper asked. "Back to them, they seem cool to me, and seem to know more than we do, so I guess-" "No! I mean, if we invite them over, two pies won't be enough!" Swiper replied. "Good point. I'll ask them," DJ said. The visitors from the Kingdom of Acorn and the Floating Island stood at attention when DJ's head popped up out of the huddle. "You guys like pizza?" he asked. They all stared in confusion and muttered, "I guess..." "Plain or pepperoni?" Another moment of confused silence. "Uhhh...either or...I...guess..." Mighty answered. "Okay, so we'll get two large plain, and two large pepperoni, just to be safe," DJ said as he rejoined the huddle. "What're they talking about now?" Julie-Su asked Rouge. "Probably drinks," Rouge muttered. The huddle dispersed as DJ stepped out in front of them. "We have decided...that you are not orcs," he said. They all stared in confusion as Grim punched DJ in the back of his head. "Idiot!" he scolded. "Heh, heh, heh! Kidding. You're cool with us. Fashizzle, dizzle!" he said, receiving more raised brows. "You speak the languizzle?" Vector asked, walking up to DJ. "Yeah, my nizzle!" "Sizzlin'!" Vector replied as the two performed some strange high five. Either that, or it was some kind of tribal ritual. Espio leaned over to Mighty and whispered, "There's more than one of him?" Grim leaned over to Cap and whispered, "There's more than one of him?"

F.C. walked over to Knuckles and said, "I know who you are, and there is no need to hide your identity from us...Knuckles." Knuckles clenched his fists as he tried to figure out how he knew. "I am a mage. I know many of the mystic arts, and telepathy is a novice lesson. Besides, your aura says it for you," F.C. said. "Aura?" Rotor asked. "Every living thing has an invisible aura around them. It is effected by how powerful a person is, and how they feel," Vipes explained. "Your aura shows sorrow, regret, torment, guilt...a thirst for revenge...And your mind says all the rest. However, I did not go into your personal thoughts, just what you were thinking about at the moment, and that was keeping your identity a secret," F.C. concluded.

Knuckles growled angrily at F.C. He was enraged that someone else had gone into his mind without him knowing. Dimitri was bad enough, but he didn't even know this guy. "Hey," Cap said as he walked over to Knuckles, "It's cool. Don't worry 'bout it." Knuckles looked at him curiously as he lowered his sunglasses. "He means about the whole...thing...last week. No biggie, man!" DJ threw in. "No biggie? No biggie??? Are you stupid or something?!?! Do you have any idea how much innocent blood is on my hands?!?! How is that 'no biggie'?!?!" Knuckles roared. "Hey! They didn't mean nothin'! They're just sayin' that everyone makes mistakes," Morph said, trying to calm the situation. "Well I made one hell of a mistake," Knuckles growled as he began to walk away. "Where're you going, Knux?" Tails asked. "I'm finding Dimitri. Now. Discussing pizza, or anything else with these morons is wasting my time," Knuckles said before he ran down the alley and turned down the street. There was silence for a second, until Freezie said, "Well, that isn't the first time we've been called that." "We'd better find him. He doesn't know the city. With this new technology that allows the legionnaires to become shadows, they could attack from anywhere," Grim said.

Knuckles had climbed up a fire escape and was already jumping from roof to roof. After he had gone a few blocks, he stopped and looked up at the stars. 'I really lost it back there. They were only trying to help, but...' He started weeping now, thinking about what he'd done. "I am so, so sorry. I will avenge you all. I promise! Just please forgive me..." he whispered to the stars, hoping for an answer that would never come. Suddenly, a familiar scent in the air alerted him to the fact that he wasn't alone. He turned around to see three of the shadow troops behind him. "Master Dimitri wishes to see you," one of them said. "Well Master Dimitri can kiss my-" "No, no, no. That won't do, Knuckles," Dimitri's voice said. Knuckles felt himself losing control of his arms. "Wh-what...?" "I didn't just disappear. I've been biding my time. And now the time has come for me to take complete control of you. Stun him," Dimitri's voice said, using Knuckles as a puppet. The three legionnaires drew their blasters, set them for stun, and fired.

Not too far away, the sound of the blasters grabbed the attention of Knuckles' companions. "What was that?" Sally asked. "E-105 laser rifle. Set for stun, fired at close range, hitting the target, approximately eight hundred and thirteen meters away," DJ said. The Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix stared in confusion and amazement. "Due east," DJ said to Freezie, ignoring the stares. "I'm on it!" Freezie replied as he ran off at an incredible speed. Sonic smirked and sped off after him as the others began to levitate into the air. "What's goin' on?!?!" Vector asked. "It's a simple floatation spell," F.C. replied as he held his glowing fingers in a strange position. "Yeah...I knew that," Mighty said sarcastically. "I prefer my own jets," DJ said as small boosters on his feet levitated him. When they all caught up with Sonic and Freezie, they were wondering why the two speedsters were just standing there with their backs turned. "What's up?" Vipes asked. "Guys," Sonic said as he turned around with Knuckles' hat in his hand, "I think we've got a problem."

**Author's Note:** So? What'd ya think? Like I said before, the Ravagers, in all their self-proclaimed greatness, belong to me. Hand's off! LOL. Don't be intimidated by me! Please come back and read some more!


	2. SEARCH AND RESCUE

SEARCH AND RESCUE

"This is bad," Espio said as he looked around. In Sonic's hand was Knuckles' hat, but Knuckles himself was nowhere in sight. "The Legion got him," Grim said. "They could have taken him anywhere! We'll never find him!" Sally said, starting to panic. "Chill," Cap said, "DJ, can you scope out the area?" he asked his companion. "Sure. Visor: thermal," he said as his green visor became purple and a red light slowly moved across it. Through his visor, DJ could see a smoke trail leading up to where they were, and then departing from the area. "I got a smoke trail, Cap. It goes for about twenty yards, then thins out. Must have set the engines for silent running," DJ said to Cap. Cap nodded his head and looked over at the out-of-towners. There was a sense of fear and concern on their faces. "Morph, go with DJ. Follow the trail as far as you can, then come back here and report in. We'll wait here for you," Cap said as he pointed to Morph Man. "Sure thing, boss!" Morph said as he suddenly began to shrink. Everyone watched in amazement as he shrunk until he had taken the form of a bird with Morph Man's head on it. The Ravagers looked at the others' faces and snickered. They were struck stupid with astonishment.

"Did you think 'Morph Man' was just a fancy title?" Morph said as he began to fly up to DJ. "We'll be back soon," DJ said as he fired his jets and the two flew off. "Morph can rearrange his molecular structure into any form or substance of his choosing," Vipes said, trying to break the others out of their stupefied trance, "However, the more complicated the object, the longer it takes him to morph." "I take it you all have...powers," Amy said. "Yeah. Well, for the most part," Swiper said. "Cool! Like what?" Tails asked. Vipes chuckled for a second, then took a deep breath. "Well, you know that F.C. is a mage, and what Morph can do, and Freezie," Vipes began, "DJ has no powers, but he is a brilliant strategist, go figure. Me," he said as he drew a sword, "I possess ninja skills, such as stealth and agility. This sword, which has been passed down through my family for generations, is magic." They looked in awe upon the young ninja's sword. It was a kitana blade, with a golden viper constricting the handle. "Cool hardware, but what's so 'magical' about it?" Vector asked. They could sense Vipes was smiling under his mask as he stepped back and held his sword before him with both hands. "Dual sai," he said as the sword began to glow. When the glowing stopped, he was no longer holding a sword, but a sai in each hand. "Way past cool," Sonic said. "Floor's yours, Grim," Vipes said as he stepped back.

"I have the ability to create and manipulate flames," Grim said as he opened his hand, revealing a fireball, "Wanna touch it?" he asked them. "Are you crazy?" Amy asked as they looked at him with surprise. "I want to," Cap said as he opened his hand. Grim tossed it to his and he caught and held it in his hand. They all stared in shock. "Cool, huh? It could burn me, but Grim doesn't want it to," Cap said with a smile as he tossed it back to Grim. When Grim caught it, he clasped his hand and a burst of flames created a staff out of thin air. At one end of it, there was a flame in the shape of a blade. "What's the Grim Reaper without his sickle?" Grim asked. "Take it, Cap," Grim said.

"Okay. Swiper and I have the same abilities, only mine are a lot stronger. About fifty years ago, there was a mad rush between nations to create the perfect soldier. Our Grandfather was chosen to become Station Square's first subject. The formula they gave him was a performance enhancer. His speed, strength, everything was greatly increased," Cap said as the others listened closely to his story. "Unfortunately, the lead scientist quit the project, and it was dropped when another team was formed. Our grandfather, however, wanted to use these abilities for good. He became the first Captain Independence," Cap said. "He eventually started a family, and for some strange reason, our dad inherited our Grandfather's abilities, only he was stronger. Eventually, our dad took over the family business. He also started a family, and we were born, a year apart from each other. However, I became even stronger than my dad was. Swiper stayed at about our grandfather's level, probably because he was a second offspring or something like that," Cap explained. "So why are you doing this and not your dad? You're still kinda young," Mighty asked. Cap and Swiper lowered their heads as Swiper whispered, "Well, our parents are dead..." Everyone, even their teammates, stared at the two brothers with great sympathy. "Oh...I-I'm sorry. I didn't-""It's alright. You didn't know," Swiper said to Mighty.

"So when did you all meet?" Rotor asked. "Well, we actually got into a big street fight. Then we realized we were all on the same side, and the rest is history," Cap said, in a happier mood. "A street fight?" Bunnie asked. "Yeah. We mistook each other for enemies and duked it out in four one-on-one fights. Vipes and F.C. were working together back then, just like DJ, Cap and I were," Swiper said. "How did you know each other?" Sally asked curiously. "DJ's dad knew and worked with our dad. He wasn't a Mecha DJ or anything, but basically the same idea. Vipes and F.C. met during some...meditation thing, was it?" Cap sad as he looked over at F.C. "Think of it like meeting someone online," F.C. said to make things simple.

Vipes turned his head as Morph and DJ were coming back. Cap walked towards them and asked, "How'd it go?" "We followed it to an old abandoned warehouse downtown. That one by the docks. No one watching it outside, probably cause it's condemned and no one would ever go there," Morph said. "DJ, you have any suggestions?" Cap asked. "Well, I did run an x-ray schematic of the building, and I have one of my crazy ideas that I know'll work great!" DJ exclaimed. They all turned and looked behind them at the sound of a jet slowly coming towards them. "You have a jet?" Sonic asked. "Who doesn't?" Freezie asked. "Hop on in and let's go get your buddy!" DJ said as he motioned for them to come inside.

Knuckles groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. He felt really dizzy, and there were bright lights in his face, so he couldn't really see where he was. He felt leather straps securing him to a table by his arms, legs and waist. He tried to break them, but he couldn't find the strength to. His body felt completely drained. He struggled to break free until he slumped back, exhausted. "Good. You're awake," Dimitri's voice said. Knuckles' head shot up at the sound of his voice as he clenched his teeth in anger. Someone, who was apparently Dimitri, stood in front of the lights, leaving a silhouette of himself in front of Knuckles. "It's good to see you again. It has been a while since we've spoken...in person at least," Dimitri said. Knuckles tried to lunge himself at Dimitri, but his restraints held him back. "Don't bother. We've injected a drug into your system that uses up your chaos energy. It's quite interesting what ground up power rings can do. They drain your chaos energy from your body. We've also injected a second drug, cutting down your body's production of glucose. Don't struggle too much. You have only enough energy to breathe, let alone try and escape," Dimitri said with a slight chuckle.

"Wh-what d-do you want w-with m-me now?" Knuckles stuttered angrily, finding that even speaking wore him out. "The whole Eclipse episode has proven your worth to me. Unfortunately, the device I have been using to control you has been destroyed by your body's chaos-induced immune system. This was of course, to be expected. I didn't expect to be able to control you that way forever. Your body has so much energy...so much raw potential...and you know not of how to use it," Dimitri said as he began to pace back and forth. "I have grow tired of this weak, metal exterior. I want the power that I once had. You have just that and more. You have a young body, full of power. More than you yourself even realize. I intend to take my mind...and put it in your body," Dimitri said. Knuckles' eyes widened with shock and horror. "Doctor, you may begin the procedure," Dimitri said as another figure came over and put an oxygen mask on Knuckles' muzzle. Knuckles struggled against it, but he slowly lost consciousness. Dimitri smiled with satisfaction. "Your power will be mine," he said. Suddenly, there was an explosion outside the room, shaking the whole warehouse. Dimitri got back up to his feet and looked to a legionnaire running into the room. "What was that?" he demanded. "Lord Dimitri! We are under attack!"

Ten seconds earlier...

All was quiet in the old abandoned warehouse. A group of legionnaires sat down, playing cards on top of an old crate. One legionnaire stood by the window, looking out at the stars. One particular star caught his eye. It started out small, but quickly grew larger. He swore at the top of his lungs and jumped off to the side as a large jet crashed into the side of the warehouse. The legionnaires moaned as they got up, and watched a door open on the side of the ship. Freezie stepped out, looked at the front of the jet, and yelled, "Damn it, DJ! I just waxed the nose this morning!" "Sorry!" DJ yelled from inside. Before the legionnaires could regroup, the Ravagers, the Freedom Fighters, and the Chaotix poured out of the jet and attacked. Mighty looked up onto a balcony and saw Dimitri looking down at the chaos beneath him. "Freezie! Knux must be up there!" he yelled. "Hang on!" Freezie yelled as he grabbed Mighty and ran up onto the balcony in a matter of seconds. Dimitri looked at them and ran down the catwalk. Mighty and Freezie went to go after him, but noticed a surgeon standing over Knuckles with a spinning circular blade, moving towards his forehead! "Drop the funky pizza roller, now!" Freezie yelled as the two ran into the room. The surgeon looked at them and thrust the blade at Freezie, who easily avoided it. "Can't catch me! Can't catch me!" he taunted. "Shut up!" the surgeon yelled. "Nah! Nah!" Freezie yelled as he ran around the surgeon, making him dizzy and causing him to collapse.

Mighty ran over to Knuckles' side and gasped when he saw him. There were three holes in his shirt, although wounds from the shots had healed. He was sweating a lot, and he looked redder than usual. Mighty touched his forehead to feel his temperature, and discovered that he was running a very high fever. He ripped the straps off and lifted him up into his arms. "Hand on, buddy. You're gonna be okay," he said to Knuckles as he and Freezie exited the room. "Hurry up! Reinforcements are comin'!" Vipes warned as Dark Legion Hovercrafts began to appear outside the windows, dropping off troops. Vipes, Swiper, and Grim used their weapons to deflect laser shots as Mighty carried Knuckles into the jet. His friends gasped when they saw the condition Knuckles was in. "Oh my God! Is he-"Sally began, until DJ cut her off with, "Strap him in! We gotta ride, man!" Mighty sat Knuckles up in a seat next to Sally and strapped him in. Sally looked at him nervously and whispered, "Please be okay."

Since DJ, who drove them over, was preoccupied with assisting the others get inside, Tails thought it would be wise if he started the jet. He jumped into the pilot's seat, and was shocked to find that there were no controls. None at all. There was a CD player, a radio, and an ac, but that was it. DJ ran over and said, "Scoot! You aren't used to this kinda jet," he said as he sat down in the pilot's seat. "Computer, controls," DJ commanded as a compartment opened and a small controller popped out. Tails looked in awe and confusion and asked, "What is that?" "PS2 controller. Comes standard," DJ said. "How can you fly like that?" Tails asked. "Simple! Triangle for reverse," he said as he pushed the button, sending the jet in full reverse out of the warehouse, "R2 for missiles," he said as he fire two missiles at the warehouse, blowing it up, "And X for accelerate!" DJ concluded as they began to move.

"Guess what? Blowing up that warehouse brought us up to fourteen thousand, nine hundred and seventy two dollars and fifty seven cents in property damages!" DJ said. They were all shocked when the Ravagers all cheered, as if it were some great feat. "I'm starting to think Knux was right when he said you were morons," Sonic said. The Ravagers chuckled and laughed for a brief second, until the jet was hit by a laser shot. "Do you like roller coasters?" DJ asked. "I get sick on 'em," Mighty said nervously. DJ tossed back a paper bag as he said, "Then this'll come in handy. Barrel roll!" "No! No barrel roll! Noooo!" Mighty yelled as the jet barrel rolled, avoiding several shots. "Flip it! Flip it!" Morph yelled in excitement. "NO! Don't-"Mighty started, until he yelled in fright as the jet flipped, leveling out behind their pursuers. "Directional pad to choose weapons...L1 to lock on...and R1 to FIRE!" DJ yelled as he pushed several buttons and fired missiles at the hovercrafts in front of them. "Now sit back and enjoy the ride," Cap said.

During the flight back, Julie-Su glanced over at Knuckles, who was strapped in across the aisle from her. She was still mad at him for what he did, but she was still worried about him. 'It doesn't mean anything. I mean, we're still friends, so I can still be worried, right?' she thought to herself. Sonic looked out the window and was surprised to see that they were over an empty field. The jet slowed to a stop and started to descend, as the ground opened up, revealing a secret room. 'How do they afford all this?' Sonic thought to himself. When they had landed, DJ looked back and said, "How're we doin'?" "Well, Mighty has lost his lunch, and I think besides being overly drugged, Knuckles now might have a mild concussion from your driving," Sally said with her hands on her hips. "Nice. A good day," DJ said as he opened and stepped out the door.

"Set him down here," Grim said as Mighty laid Knuckles down on a hospital bed in a small room. "Take his shirt off," Vipes said. Mighty nodded as he and Espio slowly and carefully removed Knuckles' shirt. "What are you gonna do?" Amy asked. "Yes. I see no equipment in here," Antoine said, inspecting the empty room. They all were kind of shocked when Vipes drew his sword. "As I have said, this is a magic sword. All I need to do is slightly pierce the skin, and it will remove any ailment from his body," Vipes said. "No way! I'm not letting you play operation with our friend!" Sonic declared. "Vipes is right. My scans are showing that the drugs are really overdosed. They're flowing freely in his bloodstream and being pumped back and forth through his heart. It would take forever to get a successful transfusion," DJ said as he finished scanning Knuckles' body with his visor. They all stood in silence, not sure of what to do. "It will be painful, but F.C. knows a spell that will calm him. You must trust in us," Vipes said. The out-of-towners glared at them, still unmoved and uncertain of this method. Suddenly, Cap stood in front of them, with a pleasant, friendly look on his face. "Listen. We just want to help you. We've helped you get him back...so please...trust us one more time," Cap said. There was something about him, perhaps his smile, or the pleasant sound of his voice, that told them that everything was going to be okay. After a brief pause, they nodded their heads in agreement.

F.C. stood behind Knuckles' head and placed his fingertips on each side of Knuckles' head. Vipes took his sword and carefully inserted the tip of it into Knuckles' skin, just above his heart. Knuckles' body tensed up as he began to growl in pain, clenching his teeth. Sally flinched when she heard him, but Sonic put his arm around her to comfort her. "Relax, Knuckles. Forgive me, but I need to go into your mind. Think about your happiest moment. Remember, Knuckles," F.C. whispered as he closed his eyes.

F.C. opened his eyes and he was in a dimly lit room, with the exception of brightly colored flashing lights. He looked around to see the Chaotix, talking and having fun. He glanced over at Julie-Su, who was talking to a brown male echidna wearing a brown hat and a green jacket. She was wearing a black dress and a black jacket. He turned to see Knuckles hugging two echidnas. A male with a white coat and goatee and a female with a yellow dress and large braids. Obviously his parents. He watched as Knuckles walked over and said something to the echidna talking to Julie-Su. He smiled when Julie-Su began to dance with Knuckles, and was a bit startled when he leaned her backwards and kissed her.

The others watched as F.C. smiled pleasantly. "A happy thought indeed," he said. They glanced over at the sword, noticing that a black color began to creep up the blade. "What the heck???" Rotor said. "The sword is sapping the impurity out of his body. When the black reaches the handle of the sword, the process is complete," Vipes explained. "Think of it like downloading something off the Internet using a dial-up connection. Slow and aggravating," DJ said. They watched for a few more minutes until Vipes removed the tip of the sword from Knuckles' chest. Vipes took the sword, flipped it so the tip was facing the floor, and stabbed the ground. When he did so, the black that covered the blade evaporated and faded away. F.C. opened his eyes and stood up. "So, what was his memory?" Sonic asked. "It is not my place to say. It is one of his private thoughts. I only saw it because I had to, so I am obliged to keep it to just us two," F.C. said. "What now?" Rouge asked as she stood besides Knuckles. "We let him sleep. He will need time to recover. Let's leave him be," Grim said as he showed them to the door. They all followed the Ravagers, but not before glancing back at their friend. Their friend who had suffered so much. "Get well," Sonic said as they closed the door behind them.


	3. PARTY ANIMALS

PARTY ANIMALS

_"You have disgraced us! Your Family! Your heritage!" "I'm sorry...I didn't mean-" "SILENCE! Thirteen generations of honor and tradition destroyed by you! Let you not die, but live with your shame! Let it consume your soul!" "No...please...'sob'...i never wanted this...won't someone forgive me...???" "Hey, man!" "M-Mighty?" "Yeah! Your best friend! And all your other friends!" "Why...why are you-" "Because we love you, bro. And because that's whatfreinds are for."_

Knuckles slowly opened his eyes, and after a split second, he quickly sat up and looked down at his chest. 'I'm-I'm still in my own body,' he thought to himself as he ran his finger across the Guardian symbol, 'But I thought Dimitri...Where the heck am I, anyway?' He sat up, grabbed his shirt, and put it on. He then noticed three blaster holes in it and quickly took it off. He then noticed his hat sitting on a chair beside him. He picked it up and put it on as he stood up. It was then that he heard voices coming from outside. He stealthily opened the door and peeked down a long hall. When the door closed behind him, he noticed that the door was a large mirror. He stared in confusion for a minute, then decided to move on. He very cautiously snuck down the hall until he realized whose voices he was hearing.

"Jeez! This grub is good, Li!" Mighty said as he thanked the Japanese chef standing in front of him. "And the show is just as good," Tails said as he watched the chef flip and toss cooking utensils in the air. "Thank you. I learned quite a bit during my brief childhood in Japan. I figured this would be better than pizza," the chef said. "Man Todd, your crib is nice!" Vector said as he high-fived a teenager wearing a beanie on his head (three guesses who it is). "Thanks, Vec. I inherited my mom and dad's company, and also got the mansion. Now we all chill here. I was thinking of selling it, since I don't really believe in using my cash to live in grandeur, but then I ended up with a lot of roommates and needed the space!"

The Chaotix and the Freedom Fighters were rather enjoying the company of the eight teenage boys, who were rather hospitable towards them. They all sat down at a rather large table, eating and talking. One of the teenagers looked up to notice that they weren't alone and said, "Well, you look better." The rest of them looked up to see Knuckles looking around the room, a bit of confusion on his face. "Knux!" Mighty yelled as he ran up and hugged Knuckles. "R-RI-IBS..." Knuckles managed to say. Mighty suddenly let go and began to chuckle. "Sorry 'bout that. Are you okay? How are you feeling?" Mighty asked. "I-I'm fine...I guess. Where are we?" Knuckles asked as he looked past Mighty at everyone else.

"Knux, let me introduce you to the Ravagers, only...not the Ravagers," Mighty said, receiving a confused look from Knuckles.

"This is Nick," a blonde, spiky haired teen stood up and smiled. "I'm Cap."

"Luke," another teen with a blonde bowl haircut stood. "Freezie."

"Li," the Japanese chef bowed. He had slicked back, short black hair. "Vipes."

"Ken," a teen with messy hair nodded his head. "Morph."

"Zack," a teen with brown hair and a goatee waved. "F.C."

"Steve," a younger teen with long, blonde hair that went just above his shoulders nodded. "Swiper."

"Randy," a teen with a black moustache, and long black hair tied into a pony tail continued to eat his meal, only saying, "Grim."

"And Todd," Mighty concluded, pointing to the teenager with the beanie, which completely covered the top of his head. "D-D-DJ-HEY!"

Everyone stared at him for a moment, then turned back to Knuckles. "I suppose I have you to thank for my rescue," Knuckles said as he looked at them. "They pretty much did it all. Mighty carried ya inta the jet and that was pretty much all we did besides help them take on the Legion," Bunnie said. Knuckles looked down at the ground, sighed, then looked up at the teens again. "I-I want to apologize for what I said earlier. You were just trying to help out, and I jumped down your throats. I owe you eight my life," Knuckles said. Nick snickered for a second and said, "Hey! It's alright. We knew that you were a good guy deep down. C'mon! Sit!" Nick said as he offered Knuckles a chair next to him and Zack.

Knuckles sat down and glared at Zack. Zack glanced over at him and smiled. "No need to worry. It will stay between us. I apologize for going into your memories, but otherwise the removal of the drugs from your body would have been rather painful," Zack said. Knuckles continued to glare. Zack gave him a curious look. 'What is wrong?' Zack said to Knuckles telepathically. 'That memory only helped then, not now,' Knuckles responded. 'What do you mean? I don't understand,' Zack replied, confused even more. Knuckles started remembering when Julie-Su broke up with him, letting Zack see what he meant. Zack's eyes widened in surprise. 'I-I don't know what to say," Zack said. 'Then don't say anything,' Knuckles thought grimly.

The rest of them looked at the two curiously, but when they broke eye contact, everyone went back to their meals, which consisted of chicken, steak, and rice. "So...what exactly did Dimitri want with you?" Sally asked. Knuckles looked down at the table and cringed slightly. "I don't even want to think about it," he said. "You hungry? The others told me you were a vegetarian, so I could whip up some more rice, or maybe even-""I'm not very hungry," Knuckles sighed.

Julie-Su glanced over at Knuckles, then over towards the clock, which read 8:49. "How is it only that time?" she asked. "Days are getting shorter here. Different time zone than where you're from," Ken answered. "Well, now that we've eaten, I have a suggestion for this evening," Todd said as he stood up from the table, gaining everyone's attention, "To celebrate our new friendship, and the successful rescue of our friend, Knuckles, let's all head down to 63rd street for the big party they're throwing tonight!" "Where there's a party, Vector is there!" Vector said, causing Espio to roll his eyes. "I dunno. We don't know anyone," Ray said. "You know us! And we know everyone else! So you're in!" Luke said cheerfully. "I guess we could use some relaxation," Sonic said. "Then it's settled! Zack can teleport us to some back alley, and we'll just stroll in," Nick said. "One thing," Zack said as his hands began to glow and a black, sleeveless shirt appeared on Knuckles, "There we go." Knuckles looked up at them with an unsure look on his face. "I'm not sure if I wanna-" "You're comin'! You need to kick back a bit," Sonic said as he began to pull Knuckles after the others out of the room.

When they walked into the club, the flashing lights blinded them for a brief second. Music was playing, humans and all sorts of creatures were dancing, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. "HEY! Nick and the guys are here!" someone said as what seemed like everyone in the room turned to greet them. "You guys sure are popular," Amy said as she looked around. "People like us because we know how to liven the party!" Luke said. Everyone turned to see two human girls running over to them. They were identical twins, with brown hair and clear blue eyes. They wore matching black skirts and white T-shirts. The only way to tell them apart was that one had a ponytail and one let her hair down. The one with the ponytail threw her arms around Nick, kissing his cheek, as the other did with Randy. "Guys! We're so glad you came!" one of them said. Nick smiled and turned to his new friends. "Guys, this is my girlfriend, Libby. That's Randy's girlfriend, Brittany. As you can tell, they're sisters," Nick said. Nick introduced the two girls to his new friends, which took a few minutes. He was careful to call Knuckles 'Red', being that the whole planet wanted to hang Knuckles the echidna at the moment.

"Nice to meet you all! Why don't you girls come on with us? We can introduce you around!" Brittany suggested. "Okay," Bunnie said as she, Julie-Su, Amy, Rouge, and Sally walked off with the twins. "Uhhh...bye?" Nick and Randy said together as they watched their girlfriends walk off. "HA! You two just got dumped! I told ya! Girls that hot cannot be straight! It's against the laws of the universe! Forces that we mortals cannot understand and dare not reckon with," Luke said. "You talk too much. And besides, at least we HAVE girlfriends," Nick said. "I know. I'm just waiting to get with Randy's hot sister," Luke said with a smile. "Randy has a hot sister?" Vector asked. "Yeah! She's steamin', man! If she were to lie down on the floor, you could roast marshmallows over her!" Luke said, as Randy began to turn red with frustration as his veins began to bulge from his head as he clenched his teeth. "That's it! You're dead!" Randy yelled as he tore after Luke, who happily jogged away, knowing Randy would never catch him. After about a minute, Randy came back, panting. "I'm...done...chasing that...moron," Randy said. "So what do you think they're talking about?" Nick asked his friends as they watched the girls converse on the other side of the room. "Shoes. Shopping. Painting each other's toenails," Todd said. There was a pause, which was broke when Randy said, "Feet disgust me." "I know!" Ken stated. "They're so nasty! I can't even look at my own feet!" Sonic said. After talking for about a minute, they all realized that they were discussing feet and decided to drop it.

"Well, let's hit the floor, then!" Todd said as he walked out onto the dance floor. Everyone followed, until Mighty looked back to notice Knuckles leaning against the wall, staring at the ground. He walked over and asked, "You okay?" Knuckles didn't answer. Mighty sighed and put his hand on Knuckles' shoulder. "Don't give me the silent treatment again, man. If anything is ever bothering you, you know you can-""I know. G'wan. Have fun. I'm not much of a dancer," Knuckles said. Mighty smiled slightly, nodded, and departed to join the others. Knuckles went back to staring at the ground. He couldn't believe it. Dimitri could have killed him...or done something like that. Knuckles shivered at the thought of Dimitri removing his brain and inserting his own into Knuckles' body. 'Well...at least Dimitri can't control me anymore. But what about Eclipse? Is that who I really am? Will it ever take control on it's own? Could I prevent it? Can I?' He sighed and looked up at his friends, thinking of how he'd hurt them. He noticed that Tails' arm wasn't in a cast anymore. Zack must have done it. He wouldn't have had to if he hadn't...Knuckles didn't even want to think about what he'd done.

He then noticed someone looking over at him. A red female echidna. She was about his age, with long, black hair. She was wearing black jeans and a blue tube-top. She smiled at him and he did the same, out of politeness. She then walked over towards him, which made him both nervous and uncomfortable. He still hadn't gotten over Julie-Su, and probably never would. "Hey. I'm Sara-Ka," she said. "I-I'm Red," he said nervously. "Are you here alone?" she asked. "Uhhh...no. I'm here with some friends. I just...don't dance," he said plainly. "I'm here on my own. So, do you wanna maybe dance with me?" she asked as a slow song began to play. "I-I dunno," Knuckles said. "Please?" she said innocently. "...O-okay," Knuckles said as he walked out with her.

The two twins had gone to dance with their boyfriends, so the out-of-town girls decided to sit down at a table. "Those two are really nice," Amy said. "Yeah. And those boys are pretty nice, too," Rouge commented. Julie-Su was about to add her own comment when she saw Knuckles dancing with another girl. Sally and the other girls looked over and she said, "I saw her go over to him. He's doing it out of politeness." "Or because he thinks she's hot." Julie-Su said as she glared at Knuckles. "I thought you were over him?" Rouge said with a mischievous smile. "I am! I'm just saying. Watch! He'll be kissing her before you know it," Julie-Su said in an annoyed voice as they all watched Knuckles.

"So...are you single?" Sara-Ka asked him. "Well...I am now. I used to be with someone, but not anymore," Knuckles said in a depressed voice. "That's too bad. I dumped my boyfriend last week. He was only interested in my looks, and not who I am. I think a relationship should be based on love. Real love, and trust," Sara-Ka said. Trust. That word again, making that same icy feeling start up in Knuckles' chest. "When I said I wanted to break up with him, he told me I was an ugly tramp," she said as she lowered her head. "Hey. That's not true. You're...you're really pretty," Knuckles said with a sympathetic smile. She blushed and said, "Thanks. You're...very handsome." Knuckles wasn't quite sure how or why, but she leaned up to kiss him, and for some reason, he kissed her back. Sally, Amy, Bunnie, and Rouge's eyes widened as Julie-Su's narrowed. After a few seconds, Knuckles realized what he was doing and pulled away saying, "I'm sorry," as he turned away from her. "It's okay! I'm the one that kissed you, remember?" "No. Not that. Sara-Ka...I'm still in love with my last girlfriend. I'm not the kind of guy you want, or deserve. You'd better go and find someone else. It's not you at all...It's me..." Knuckles sighed as he looked at her. She sighed and nodded. "I'm sorry you feel that way. I hope you find some way to be happy," Sara-Ka said, before Knuckles smiled and left.

"I bet you feel really silly," Sally said to Julie-Su, who was blushing from embarrassment. She stood up and walked away, not wanting to listen. She stopped and sat down on a bench, trying to cool off. While she did this, a brown, male echidna came over. "Hi. I'm Jordan. Can I join you, miss..." "Julie-Su. You can if you want," she said as he sat down. "You look upset. Anything I can do to help?" he asked. "Not unless you can make me forget about my old boyfriend," Julie-Su sighed sadly. She looked up at him when he took her hand and whispered, "I know one way I can." They both smiled as he leaned over and kissed her. Knuckles was walking over to where he was before when he saw Julie-Su kissing another guy. He felt like dirt. Like Robotnik had just been dropped on top of him. He would have given anything to be the guy kissing her. He put his hand over his heart as he felt the icy shiver and turned as he walked out the door.

Julie-Su would have enjoyed every second of this, if she could have felt it. But there was nothing. No thrill, no surge of energy that made her feel incredible. Nothing. When they stopped kissing, she sighed and said, "Look, I appreciate this...but I'm not ready for another relationship yet. Is that okay with you, Jordan?" she asked, feeling bad for him. He smiled and said, "No problem. I'm glad I could at least help out. Have fun!"

Sally was surprised when Julie-Su came back with a saddened face. "Sally...can we talk? Alone?" Julie-Su asked. Sally smiled as she put her arm around Julie-Su and the two friends walked to a nearby table. The table was in the corner of the room, with a small window next to it, letting in a cool breeze. Outside it, Knuckles stood against the wall, thinking about what he had just seen. "So, what do you want to talk about? Something to do with Knuckles?" Sally asked. Knuckles was surprised at what he was hearing. "Yes. I...I just kissed another guy. You know, a spur-of-the-moment type thing. Anyway...when I kissed him, it felt...wrong," Julie-Su said, looking lost and confused. "What do you mean?" Sally asked. "I mean...I didn't even feel it. Not like I did when I was...with Knuckles," Julie-Su said with a sigh. Knuckles wasn't sure just how to feel right now. Was this a good or a bad thing?

"Do you maybe miss being with him?" Sally suggested. Julie-Su sat in silence for a minute, while Knuckles' heart almost stopped beating in suspense. "That could be it..." Julie-Su said quietly. Outside, Knuckles couldn't help but slightly smile. "I...I realize that I blew things out of proportion. That he wasn't really 'involved' with you and Rouge. I know that he's a good guy," Julie-Su once again, said quietly. Knuckles' smile widened. "So what's the problem?" Sally asked. "Although he is a good guy...he still lied to me. He still keeps secrets. A relationship needs trust, as well as love,...and he just isn't willing to trust," Julie-Su sighed. Knuckles' smile began to fade as his heart began to sink. "I'm still his friend, but...I don't feel the same way about him as I did before. I don't think I ever will. I just hope he figures it out and realizes that we'll never be together...and that he has to move on," Julie-Su said quietly. Knuckles didn't want to hear any more. He slid down the wall until he was seated on the ground. He looked up at the stars, unsure of what to do. Move on? How could he move on? She was all he wanted. His only desire was to be with her. But now that was just a memory. Now that was just a dream. A dream that will never again become a reality. His chin sunk down to his chest, as he stared at the ground in silence, the blasting music playing in the background.

**Author's Note:** So? What'd ya think? Stay with it, cause the action and humor builds up! I'll post more soon after I get some reviews! L8r!


	4. FIRST DAY IN STATION SQUARE

**Author's Note:** Back again! Sorry it took so long to post tjis. I meant to do it Friday, but didn't get to it until Sunday! Anyway, now that the setting is...well...set, the plot will thicken. It will have you in a mixed state of laughter and suspense from the first paragraph to the end of the last posted chapter. In conclusion, let ye wait no longer!

FIRST DAY IN STATION SQUARE

"Luke, could you go get some more milk?" Ken asked as he dealt out cards to Todd, Sonic, Mighty, Vector, Tails, Rotor, Antoine, Espio and Steve. "Sure. But don't expect me to run. I'm still too tired," Luke said with a yawn. It was about eight thirty in the morning. The girls were still in bed, Li and Zack were meditating, Nick and Randy were still in bed, and Knuckles had gone outside to be alone. They were all a bit worried about him. When they left the party last night, he seemed really depressed and didn't say a word to anyone.

Luke walked down the hall in his boxers and socks, eyelids half open. His hair was a mess, and he let out another thunderous yawn. Down the other hall, the girls had just gotten dressed and were heading towards the kitchen for breakfast. "Do you think the guys are up?" Amy asked. "Ah'm sure of it," Bunnie replied. "Well, I'm hungry, so let's hope they are," Sally said. "Yeah. Me too," Julie-Su said, responding to Sally's statement. When they turned the corner, they all gasped. There was Luke, in a pair of socks and boxers, scratching his groin. "Ahhh!" they all screamed as they put their hands over their eyes. Luke just stood there, eyelids half-open in a dazed state, and muttered, "Ah.". After a second, he walked past them towards the kitchen. "I never...he didn't even care! Does he have any shame? Any decency?" Julie-Su asked. "We better not stay here too long, before our boys pick up these habits," Sally said, shuttering at the thought of the guys acting this way.

Luke opened the fridge and took out a gallon of milk. He closed the door and began to walk back when he heard something behind the wall. He pushed a secret button to reveal a small balcony, with a stairway leading down to a training room. Down there, he could see Nick training. Suddenly, Randy walked in from another room. From here, Luke could see the two smile as they set themselves in fighting positions. "Dude!" Luke yelled in excitement as he sped off back to the others. While this was happening, the others were still playing cards. "Three of a kind," Rotor said. "Full house," Sonic announced with a grin. They all turned to Todd. If he didn't win, then Sonic would. "I'm sorry...royal flush," Todd declared with a large grin on his face as he revealed his hand. The others grumbled as Todd grabbed his winnings, which were AppleJacks and Fruit Loops. "Heh, heh! What a bountable harvest! A banquet worthy of a king!" he said as he put his winnings in his cereal bowl. "Pass the Corn Flakes," Ken sighed as the others grumbled. Suddenly, Luke burst in, yelling, "GUYS! Nick and Randy are going at it in the training room!" "Sweet!" Li yelled as he and Zack rose. "Let's go, then!" Steve yelled as everyone stood up and ran out the door, Todd carrying his bowl.

"The kitchen is this way, right?" Rouge asked. "I think so. That's what the map said," Julie-Su replied. Suddenly, they started feeling a rumbling beneath their feet. "What is that?" Bunnie asked. "It sounds like a stampede!" Sally declared. All at once the Ravagers came tearing around the corner, dressed in only boxers and socks. The girls gasped as they all ran by, yelling "Yeah!" "Come on!" "Let's go!" "Don't wanna miss this!" Todd lagged behind, carrying a bowl of cereal. He stopped in front of the girls, held up his bowl and asked, "Wanf some Froot Roofs?" with his mouth full of cereal. The girls screamed and covered their eyes. Todd shrugged and ran after the others. Sonic and the other guys ran after them, but not before stopping to stare at the girls, who had buried their faces in their hands. "You gals okay?" Sonic asked. "Oh yes! Fine! We're used to guys running around in their underwear!" Sally declared. "Oh. I thought something was wrong. Well, we'll catch ya later! Wait up, guys!" Sonic yelled as they hurried after the Ravagers. "We're doomed," Amy moaned.

"I got my money on Nick!" "Mine's on Randy!" They all stood on the balcony watching Randy and Nick fighting below. Nick threw a swift kick that Randy just barely dodged. Randy flipped back and fired a fireball, which Nick easily evaded. Soon the two were in a grip lock, staring each other down as they tried to outmatch each other's strength. They clenched their teeth as they growled, sweat pouring from their foreheads.

Suddenly, the room began to shake, and everyone looked around in confusion. "What the...?" Tails yelled. Nick and Randy stood and looked up at the others. "What's going on?!?!" Nick yelled. "What did you idiots do?!?!" Randy yelled. "We didn't do anything...this time! Computer, locate the source of the disturbance and put it on screen," Todd said as a large section of wall slid back, revealing a large screen. When the screen activated, Hyper Knuckles was on it, concentrating his energy. "What's he-" "Wait! He's saying something!" Steve said to Vector. "Come on! You can...do it!" Knuckles growled. For a second, his body flashed green, then back to pink. "You can control it! You just need to-"Knuckles said before yelling in what seemed like pain, and fell to the floor in his normal red form. "I...I can't d-do it. Dimitri was...used to handling levels of p-power like that. With-thout him...I can't handle it," Knuckles growled as he panted heavily. "I have these gifts...b-but I can only de-destroy with them...What's the point, then?!?!" he yelled as he slammed the ground. He slowly stood up and stumbled away from the screen's view.

"He's got some problems, I see," Randy said as he looked over at the Chaotix. "Yeah. And he thinks he needs to handle them alone. He won't let anyone help him," Rouge sighed. "Kinda like you when we started off, right Randy?" Nick said with a smile. "Yeah," Randy muttered, putting his head down. "If you didn't eat, eat now. Some good ol' Legionnaire Hunting will cheer him up," Nick said.

Half an hour later, everyone was entering a large garage. "We're not taking the jet?" asked Tails. "No way! Too big for daytime! We're takin'...the van!" Morph announced. "What van can fit us all?" Sally asked. "Grim rides his motorcycle, F.C. flies with DJ, Freezie runs, and Morph turns into something small. Sonic can run, too, so we'll have the room," Vipes reassured. "We'll see," Rouge said, still uncertain. DJ flipped a light switch and revealed 'the van', which was built more like a tank. It was black and gray, heavily armored, with a gattling gun positioned on the roof. "You got a gattling gun!" Vector said, thinking it was the coolest thing ever. "It doesn't work. It's just for look and intimidation. I'd be intimidated if someone drove up with a gattling gun on the roof!" Freezie explained. "Not to be used without parental supervision," Swiper joked. "Speaking of such...where's yours?" Sally asked, looking at them with suspicious eyes. "Oh, yeah! We didn't introduce you to Crazy Uncle Kyle! We'll have to do that later, though. He talks to an imaginary Leprechaun when he eats his morning cereal," Freeze said. No one spoke, being that they were too wierded out. Was anything normal about these guys? Rouge opened the sliding side door and peered in. "I'm flying," she said as she took a step back and crossed her arms. "You're the one missing' out!" DJ said. Cap looked over at Knuckles. He was staring at the ground again. "Hey, Knux! I'm driving', so do you want shotgun?" Cap asked. "Whatever," Knuckles mumbled as he stepped into the passenger seat of the van. Cap's smile faded, along with everyone else's as they all got in.

"This thing got a radio?" Vector asked as they drove down freeway. "Give me a sec," Swiper said as he turned a knob. Suddenly, a funky beat started playing on the radio. "I love this song!" DJ said as he flew next to the driver's seat window. To everyone's surprise, Cap, Swiper, DJ, Vipes, F.C., and Morph began to sing along with the radio.

He's saying

I'm on a roll

With all the girls I know!

His baby's momma

She ain't so slow

He's saying

I'm on a roll

With all the girls I know!

I know you wanna hit that!

I know you wanna hit that, hit that!

All the world is gettin' with, I say!

Consequences are a lot, but hey!

That's the way it

That's the way things go-O!

OYE! OYE! OYE!

"You know...this song is kinda derogatory towards women," Sally mentioned. "No it's not you silly squirrel!" DJ joked in a squeaky voice. "Question, why don't the cops or someone pull us over? There's a gattling gun on the roof, and I thought you guys were wanted?" asked Tails. "Thank F.C. for that. He casts a spell that throws a cloak over us, making us look like regular pedestrians in a regular pedestrian van. They can't even see DJ, F.C. or Rouge," Vipes said. "It's nothing," F.C. said as he flew alongside the van, "We should probably pull over and park soon," he suggested. "Will do," Cap said as he pulled off the freeway, Grim following behind them on his black motorcycle.

"Okay, okay, I got one! Beat box for me, DJ!" Freezie said. DJ began beat boxing as Freezie began to rap.

Here we are up on da roof,

We'ze are gonna git da spoof,

On the Dark Leg-ion,

We'ze gonna seige 'om!

Cuz we'ze are da best, mon!

Ya know we got skillz 'n we got class,

Aw, Jeez we're gonna kick their-

"PAUSE! We got kids here! PG rating!" Cap scolded as he pointed to Amy and Tails. "Sorry," Freezie said. "Is this what you do all day?" Espio asked. "Yep. It's better to wait for trouble to find you," Swiper said as he stretched his arms out. "He can't just chill, can he?" Grim said as he glanced over at Knuckles. The echidna was peering down from the rooftop, like a hunter searching for its prey. "He's...never really been able to. He's always so serious about everything...especially after..." Sally said, not being able to talk about the events that took place not too long ago. All of a sudden, an alarm from a store across the street went off, gathering everyone's attention. A Legionnaire ran out, carrying a large bag over his shoulder. "Action time, baby!" DJ yelled. They all glanced up to see Knuckles rushing along the rooftops, following the Legionnaire down the street. "Wait up!" Sonic yelled as he ran after him. "You aren't getting away!" Knuckles growled out loud as he jumped across to the next rooftop. Suddenly, something caused him to stop dead in his tracks. He slowly pulled off his sunglasses as he stared.

"What's he doing?" Mighty yelled as they Knuckles stop up ahead of them. "I know. That's 63rd street...well, where it was," Morph said grimly. Knuckles was staring out at a huge crater. He knew this place. He did this. He fell to his knees as he continued to stared out at the crater. His friends finally caught up with him, looked out at the crater, then looked at Knuckles with sympathetic faces. "Ravagers, let's go! We've got a Legionnaire to catch!" Cap yelled as they jumped off the roof after the Legionnaire. "Knux?" Mighty said as he knelt down next to his friend. Knuckles didn't respond. He continued to stare into space. "Hey buddy, this...this wasn't your fault. It was Dimitri! We all think that, why can't you?" Sonic asked. "Because no one else does," Knuckles whispered as his head began to droop.

"We got a live one!" DJ said as he hovered over to them with the Legionnaire struggling to get free. He was dropped to the ground, only to find that he was surrounded. "He's mine," Knuckles growled. The Legionnaire laughed and said, "You don't scare me, Guardian! I won't talk!" The Legionnaire's laugh slowly faded away as a malicious smile curled on Knuckles' mouth. "Oh really? Well, what if I broke your arms? And if you still didn't, what if I broke your legs? And if you still resisted...what if I broke all your ribs...one, by one, by one," said Knuckles, his voice seeming a little deeper. Everyone stared in shock. "K-Knux?" Sonic said. Knuckles flinched and took three steps back from the frightened Legionnaire. "Did...did I just say that?" he said, looking down at his hands. "I...I'll be right back," Knuckles mumbled as he walked to the other end of the roof. As he walked away they couldn't help but wonder...What if Knuckles wasn't just overreacting about the whole 'Eclipse' thing? What if he was truly schizophrenic, and had some sinister split personality? What would that mean for him?

Cap turned his attention back to the Legionnaire and said, "Listen, scum! We won't go to that extent, but we will make you talk!" "Yeah, right!" the Legionnaire mocked. Cap smiled, turned to Grim and said, "Grim, give him the finger." Everyone raised a brow when he said this. "What?" Rouge said. "I wanna give 'im the finger!" complained DJ. "Not that finger, moron!" Grim growled. Grim walked over to the Legionnaire and snapped his fingers, setting the tip of his index finger aflame. "This technique is called the Finger of the Infernal Flame. When touched by it, you envision yourself in the pits of Hell. A split second can drive the strongest mortal mad. So...you either talk, or spend the rest of your days as a steamed vegetable. You have 'til my finger touches your forehead to decide," Grim said as he slowly moved his flaming finger forward. The Legionnaire sweated and panted, until he finally yelled, "OKAY! I'LL TALK!!!" "Good," Grim said as he blew his finger out.

Sonic walked over to Knuckles, who was staring off into the distance. Sonic had felt weird around Knuckles ever since the Eclipse incident. He just couldn't get over the fact that Knuckles actually envied him. 'I never thought...I guess I never realized how lucky I am. Jeez. He never really hated me...and I treated him like dirt," Sonic thought to himself. "Yo, Knux," said Sonic, gaining Knuckles' attention. "Listen...I...I never really knew how you truly felt. And...I'm kinda glad that I do...because, well, I think now we might be able to...I dunno...be better friends," the hedgehog said. After a long pause, Knuckles finally spoke. "Dimitri's gone, you know. He can't control me anymore." Sonic's face brightened with a large smile. "Well that's good news," he said. He stopped smiling when the echidna shook his head. "Dimitri was the one that released Eclipse, but he was also the one that kept him in check. After what happened back there...I think that Eclipse is fighting for control," Knuckles said. "Knux, you're gonna be fine! It's all in your head! Besides, it was Dimitri's-" "Dimitri isn't the one with the memories! Dimitri isn't the one with the screams echoing in his head! Dimitri isn't the one coping with the loss of the love of his life, and his sanity at the same time!" Knuckles yelled. Sonic just stared, not sure how to respond to that. "Now you get it," Knuckles mumbled.

Freezie zipped over and said, "Guys, we got him to talk. Apparently, there's a big hideout downtown. Really confidential. We've decided to go for a visit." Knuckles put his sunglasses back on and began to head back to the alley where the van was parked. Sonic stood for a moment, staring at his echidna friend. For the first time in...ever...he wanted to help him, only to find that he couldn't. Solemnly, he hurried to catch up to the others.


	5. THE SLIGHTLY SUICIDAL BUT DEFINITELY CRA...

THE (SLIGHTLY SUICIDAL BUT DEFINITELY CRAZY) PLAN

"Is everything ready?" Dimitri's voice said. "Yes, my lord. We will take them by complete surprise," A shadow Legionnaire said, bowing to Dimitri's image on the computer screen. "Excellent. First, Station Square, then Echidnapolis. Once we have the Master Emerald, then we will use it to power our devices, and conquer the world," Dimitri said proudly. "Everything goes as planned, my lord. Tomorrow at sunset, the Dark Legion shall rise up," the Legionnaire said. "Good. See to it that this remains a secret. End transmission," said Dimitri as the screen went blank.

A second after Dimitri ended his transmission, a black and gray van crashed through the wall. When the Legionnaires in the room looked up, Morph was on top of the van pointing a gattling gun at them. "Sup, y'all! Listen up! Nobody moves, and I won't have to use ol' Betsy here!" Morph said, his finger on the trigger. DJ walked past the Legionnaires over to the computer. He inserted a cord from his suit and began to type. "Let's see. Copy and download all files...upload this...and we're done! Nice doin' business with you!" DJ said as he flew out through the hole in the wall, the van following him out. "NO! They'll ruin everything! After them!" a Legionnaire yelled as he motioned for others to give chase. He went over to the computer and began to type. "What did he do?" another Legionnaire asked. "I don't know," he replied as he clicked to open a file. All of a sudden, the Ravagers' voices began to sing on the computer, just above a whisper.

I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves,

Everybody's nerves,

Everybody's nerves.

I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves,

AND THIS IS HOW IT GOES!!!

The Legionnaires looked at each other as the voices became louder and began to sing faster and faster every verse. "Turn it off!" one of them yelled. "I can't!" another yelled as he feverishly typed. They were sweating and growling, trying to shut out the song, but it became louder and louder. One Legionnaire lost control and yelled, "THAT'S IT! ENOUGH!" as he picked up a rocket launcher and pointed it at the computer. "NO!" one of them yelled, but it was too late. "DIE! HA, HA, HA, HA!" the Legionnaire yelled as he pulled the trigger.

"Nice job, y'all!" Swiper said as he looked back into the van. They were kind of scrunched in there, but they made the most of it. "Yeah! I can't believe it! We actually did something without something blowing up!" DJ said as he flew next to the driver's seat, took the controller from Cap, and buckled himself in. They all laughed for a second, but paused when they heard a wall explode behind them. Mighty then noticed that they were reaching a fork in the road and yelled, "TURN LEFT! TURN LEFT!" "Right it is!" DJ yelled as he pushed the analog stick on the PS2 controller to the right. "What is that idiot doing?" Grim asked Freezie as he drove his black motorcycle up next to him and Sonic. "Don't know. Let's follow," Freezie said as they also made a right turn. "YOU IDIOT!" Grim yelled as he drove up next to the driver's seat window. "This freeway's still under construction! Why'd you decide to turn right?!?!" he demanded. "I don't know. A voice in my head told me to. Seemed like a good idea at the time," DJ shrugged. "Was it the voice of Satan trying to send us all to Hell?!?!" Grim yelled. "Unfinished freeway!" Mighty yelled. "Calm down! DJ, time for operation airlift," Cap said. "I got ya!" DJ replied as he flew out the door, Cap taking the player two controller to steer. "What's operation airlift?" Sally asked curiously. "Well, it's really quite simple. DJ plants a small explosive at the gap in the overpass, we hit the hydraulics before it blows, then Morph shifts into giant glider wings and we gently float away," Vipes explained. "Oh," Mighty said. There was a moment of silence, until Mighty started screaming, "GET ME OUTTA HERE!!!"

"All set, Boss! Ten seconds!" DJ said as he sat back in the driver's seat. "Why don't you just turn around?!?!" Amy yelled. "Into the Legionnaires in jeeps. Smart," Swiper said as he pointed back. They looked out the back window to see four jeeps chasing them, with Legionnaires firing at them. "Ready for countdown?" DJ said. DJ, Cap, Swiper, Morph, and Vipes all yelled out, "Three, two, one, BOOM!!!" The van bounced up above the bomb as it went off, and Morph changed into a giant set of glider wings. The force of the explosion propelled them across the gap over to the other side, where they landed with a large thud. Freezie, Sonic and Grim all looked at each other and then at the gap. They all screamed as they drew near it, until they began to float over it. "Huh?" Sonic said as he moved his hand back and forth under him to see what was holding him up. "Thanks F.C.!" Freezie yelled. "No prob!" F.C. shouted back. "HA! Grim's pulling an ET!" DJ yelled. "Shut up, stupid!" Grim yelled back. "That's it! Pull over! I'm not takin' this anymore! You're nuts! You're all nuts! You guys can go back to the funny farm with these clowns, but not me! I'm walking home!!!" Mighty yelled. Everyone stared for a minute, until Vipes asked, "Are you quite done?" Mighty took a deep breath and said, "Yeah. I'm good."

"DJ, what was on their hard drive?" Cap asked. DJ didn't answer for a second. He then turned to Cap and said, "Plans...Invasion plans. They're gonna attack Station Square tomorrow night...with an army." "By the walkers," Tails whispered. Cap turned his attention back to the road and said, "Alright. We gotta make a stop...at the President's office." "You know how tough it'll be to get past security?" Vipes questioned. "We'll just have to go through 'em, then," Cap said grimly.

"WHAT!!!" the President yelled. "Well, the Dark Legion is going to invade the city tomorrow night with about three thousand Legionnaires, all armed with tanks backing them up," DJ said. The President slumped back into his seat and said, "You burst in here, knock out my security, and now you're telling me that the city is going to be invaded tomorrow night?!?!" the President yelled. "Well...yeah," Sonic replied.

"I know that we're vigilantes and we're also wanted, but we can help. I've got a plan," DJ said, "G.U.N. is very well equipped, so they could be a big asset. First, you'll need to clear civilians. I'd say the first five blocks going inward on the entire southern side of the city." "WHAT?!?! Evacuate the...that would...!" "Yeah, I know. Now, check this out. We wanna be in the front lines. G.U.N. should be positioned at about, say...the five black limit," DJ said. "Are you insane! A handful of you against an army! Do you have a death wish?!?!" "Nope. We're just stupid," Freezie commented. The President was too shocked to argue, so he tried reasoning instead. "G.U.N has state of the art weaponry! They get funding from the Thorndykes!" DJ snickered, grabbing the Presidents attention. "What is so funny?" "Nothing, nothing!" DJ said. "Anyway, the Thorndykes-" DJ and Freezie both began to snicker. The President sighed and said, "Yes, Thorndyke is a funny name. Get over it." DJ and Freezie broke out into laughter. "HA! He said Thorndyke! HA, HA, HA, HA! Ohhh, man. We're good now."

Sally was in shock. How idiotic were they? "I have to agree with the President! That plan is absolutely suicidal! Why don't we have G.U.N. stationed on the rooftops and give us cover fire???" Sally asked. "Because we're wanted and they might decide to take a free shot when we win. Besides, they'd be better off taking out what we leave 'em," said Morph. "What can a handful of teenagers possibly do to such numbers?!?!" the President demanded. "We know they're coming from Rail Canyon. They'd be very tightly packed in there. We can blow up a trench in the canyon to slow down their assault. That way, they won't be able to get any tanks over. Freezie can use his speed to snag all the guns in the front lines, giving us the chance to dig in," Cap said.

"You're talking suicide!" Sally yelled. "Listen, I know that DJ is a moron, but his idiotic plans have always pulled through for us, so I'm in," Grim said. "What?!?! Cap, you're sensible. Are you really..." Sally said. Cap nodded his head and said. "Yep. I'm in." Sally sighed in frustration and said, "Fine! Go and get yourselves killed, but I won't let my people get involved with such idiocy! When the Legion wins, it'll be all your fault! I hope your city burns!" "Not before you do, squirrel girl!" Grim growled, his fist ignited in flame. "Hey, back off!" Sonic yelled, standing between him and Sally. "You wanna mess, hedgehog?!?!" Freezie yelled. "Like you could do anything!" Mighty shouted. "Oh, so you're done puking in the back seat and ready to be a man? 'BOUT TIME!" Cap yelled.

In a matter of seconds, everyone in the room seemed to be arguing. "You are the dumbest smart, rich person I've ever met!" Sally yelled. "Oh yeah? Well you're the squirreliest smart girl I've ever met! So ha!" DJ said. "What???" Sally asked. "OH! You can't even make a come back! You just got served!" DJ boasted. "You think you're strong?!?! Well I think I'm stronger!" Mighty yelled at Cap. "Well prove it! Let's arm wrestle right now!!!" Cap yelled. Mighty and Cap pushed some papers off of the President's desk as they began to arm wrestle. The President just watched with shock on his face as the two wrestled. "You think you're fast! I can take that mask off your face before you knew it!" Sonic boasted to Freezie. "Oh yeah, well I could do the same with your mask!" Freezie yelled back. "I'm not wearing a mask, idiot!" Sonic yelled. "Oh, you mean that's your face? HA! Shut down!" "You're a freakin' pyro!" Espio yelled. "There's nothing wrong with that!" Grim shouted. "There are plenty of things wrong with that!" Vector yelled, backing up Espio. "Your van is a hunk of junk!" Rotor shouted. "Well why don't you take Jared's advice and go on a Subway diet!" F.C. yelled. "Don't make fun of Rotor!" Antoine yelled with his French accent. "Learn some freakin' English!" Swiper yelled. "Hey, don't you be insultin' my T'wan!" Bunnie yelled, defending her boyfriend. "Oh, where'd you pick up that accent? Down south or at KFC?!?!" Vipes yelled. The senseless bickering continued until Knuckles, at the top of his lungs, yelled, "CUT THE CRAP, NOW!!!" Everyone turned to him, then to each other. They all stood up, looking at the ground. "You know...I wasn't lying when I said you were the smartest...squirrelly...smart...squirrel...girl...yeah," DJ mumbled to Sally.

Knuckles wasn't done yet, and continued to yell. "Listen up! I don't care what you guys do, but I'm sticking with the Ravagers on this one! They aren't cowards! They aren't afraid to fight and die for what they care about!" "And who might you be?" the President asked. "I am Knuckles the Echidna, the one responsible for the destruction in your city last week," Knuckles said. The President's gaze was a mix of fear and surprise. "I don't blame you to be afraid of me, but I won't let Dimitri conquer Station Square. I'll fight 'til I've lost every ounce of blood in my body. I want to get him for what he did to me, and if I have to use their plan, I will," Knuckles said. There was silence for a moment as everyone absorbed what Knuckles had said. Mighty sighed, walked over to Knuckles and said, "Knux, you and I are best friends...but I couldn't call myself your best friend unless I was willing to back you up no matter what. I'll probably regret this later on, but I'm in." Sally looked at Mighty with disbelief. "Wherever Mighty leads, I'll follow," Vector said. "M-me t-t-to," Ray stuttered. "I don't know what I'd do without you idiots, so I guess I'm in too," Espio said as he shrugged his shoulders. Sonic glanced over at Sally, frowning. He had to make a decision, although it would be hard. He looked over at Knuckles and asked, "Is this a private party, or can I come along for the ride?"

Sally looked at him with surprise and said, "What?!?! Are you cra-"Sonic put a finger over his lips to tell her to stop, and said, "Sal, I gotta do this. I won't just sit back and watch them go out there, not knowing if I'll ever see them again. I'm going." Sally threw her arms around him and began to cry, while Sonic hugged her back, whispering that it would be okay. "Still, what are the chances that you could possibly overcome such great odds?" the President asked. Cap sighed and said, "Mr. President...this city is my home, and I treasure it. I will fight to my dying breath before I hand it to the Legion. We all have special abilities, and with them we can pull through. And even if we don't, we'll take out enough for G.U.N to pick off what's left when they're stranded in the empty streets. If I live through this...I'll turn myself in." The President stared at Cap, as all of the Ravagers stood behind him. "We all will," DJ said. "We do this, and you'll have caught the Ravagers. But first, you need to trust us. Please...give us your trust," Cap said. The President sighed, looked out his window, then back at Cap with a smile. "Fine. I'll address the people, evacuate the said area, and assemble G.U.N. And you, Mr. Mecha DJ, will have to join me and my defense attorney tonight to discuss this further." "Yes, sir," DJ said with a salute. "Okay then. Let's get prepared," Grim said as they all turned away from the President and walked out the door.

Everyone was rather quiet on the way back. No one said anything. DJ didn't even make any stupid remarks. When they got back to the mansion, via the secret entrance, it was about ten o'clock, and everyone gathered in the living room to relax and try to enjoy the evening. Todd went up to the computer room to try and decipher more information from the Dark Legion database, and Knuckles, surprisingly, went to bed. He had been acting stranger than he had been the night they got back from the party. Did him dancing with that girl have something to do with it, or was there something else bothering him? As usual, he didn't tell anyone what was eating him.

Nick walked down the hallway with two cups of hot chocolate as he walked into the computer room, where Todd was feverishly typing. "Here," Nick said as he handed Todd a cup as he sipped his own. "Thanks, bro. I've checked every file on their hard drive. Most of it is standard stuff. Weapons designs, the technology behind this new Shadow Troop thing...basic stuff, except for this," Todd said as he double clicked a file, opening it. "Read the name," Todd said. Nick glanced at the name and was shocked. "Gerard Robotnik???" Nick said. "Yep. The leading scientist behind the super soldier program Gramps was in. Apparently, he left to pursue his dream of controlling chaos energy. Look at these formulas and data tables," Todd said as he pointed on the screen. "Un-real. Those energy levels are off the scale!" "The plot thickens even more, look at this blood sample," Todd said as he opened one of his own files. "See the difference?" Nick glanced at Gerard Robotnik's data, then at the data given from the blood sample. "What difference?" he asked. "Exactly. There is none. And guess where I got this blood sample?" Todd asked. Nick shrugged and Todd said, "Knuckles. I took a blood sample while he was recuperating to see if the drug was totally out of his system, and then I discovered this. Knuckles is able to tap into the power of a chaos emerald." There was silence, then they looked back at the monitor. "Now this is strange. There's one file I can't open. I've used every hacking technique I know, and even let the computer take a whack. There's no way to open it without clearance," Todd said. "What is it?" Nick asked. "I dunno. It just says 'Project Wodahs." "Wodahs? Weird file name. I wonder what-" Nick was cut off when a familiar voice began screaming in another room. "What the...???" Todd yelled. "Let's go!" Nick shouted.

The two friends ran down the hall, meeting the others outside Knuckles' room When they opened the door, he was flailing around on the bed, screaming things. "NO! STOP! GET AWAY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO! IT WASN'T MY FAULT! STOP IT!!!" Mighty ran over and began to shake him. "KNUX! Wake up!" Knuckles shot up out of bed, with sweat pouring down his face and tears pouring down his cheeks. "I can still see their faces...I can still hear them screaming. All of them...echoing in my head. It's all my fault... They're all dead! She's dead!" Knuckles yelled, putting his hands on his head. "Who is?" Rouge asked. "Julie-Su...I killed her. Good God I killed her." They all looked at him, then Julie-Su and said, "Knuckles, she's right–""SHE'S DEAD! I killed her! I killed her..." Knuckled moaned. Julie-Su walked over and knelt down in front of him. "Knuckles, look! It's me! I'm okay, I'm right here," she said. Knuckles looked up at her, seeming shocked to see her. "J-Julie-Su..." he whispered before putting his head down. "Do you still hate me?" he whispered, "Please don't. I know I hurt you, but I couldn't take the whole world hating me if you hated me too." Julie-Su had never felt more sympathetic towards him. "I don't hate you, Knuckles. We...we're friends," she said.

Zack knelt next to Julie-Su and put his glowing hand in front of Knuckles' face. "Knuckles, you are going to fall asleep when the glow fades. When you do, you will dream that you are home on your island, with your friends and family all around you. They will be happy, and so will you. Now sleep well, my friend," Zack said as the glow faded and Knuckles slumped back, fast asleep. Nick and Todd looked at each other and nodded, letting each other know that what they had been discussing should remain a secret between them.


	6. STAND STRONG, STAND TOGETHER

STAND STRONG, STAND TOGETHER

Sonic hadn't shut his eyes all night. He wasn't tired, either. It was the oddest feeling. 'I should be exhausted, but I'm wide awake,' he thought to himself as he sat up. He threw on his shirt and walked out the door. Todd's mansion was pretty big. There was enough space for everyone to have a room. He turned to go down the stairs, and saw Nick on the porch, staring into the distance. Sonic opened the sliding screen door and leaned against the guardrail next to Nick. Nick's eyes didn't move. "Couldn't sleep?" Nick asked, finally turning to Sonic. "How could I? This could be my last day...my last few hours," Sonic said. "Think like that, and they will be. Have some faith. We can overcome any obstacle if we stick together," Nick said, turning back to the horizon. Sonic chuckled, turned to Nick with a smile and said, "Nothing ever bothers you, huh?" Nick sighed and turned away, walking back into the mansion. "If only," Nick muttered. Sonic watched as Nick threw on a jacket and walked out the front door. "Nick's gone?" Todd asked Sonic. The blue blur nodded and turned to Todd. "What's with him?" Todd took a deep breath and said, "Nick is the strongest guy I know. Sometimes it seems like nothing could ever get to him. But there's always one thing that does," Todd said. Sonic raised a brow. "What's that?" To Sonic's surprise, a tear rolled down Todd's face as he muttered, "Gramps..."

Nick was standing in front of a gray tombstone. At its base, there were beautiful white flowers. Inscribed on the stone was:

**JOSHUA ROGERS **

**BELOVED GRANDFATHER**

Nick sighed as the wind blew his spiked hair. "Gramps...I wish you were here...now more than ever. Everyone expects me to lead them into this fight...but for the first time in a long time, I'm scared, Gramps," Nick said as he knelt down in front of the tombstone, placing his right hand on top of it. "You were a better leader than I am now. Maybe if I were smarter...you'd still be here right now. I just met some of these guys...and they're willing to follow my lead into something we can only hope to win. Gramps..." Nick sighed as he lowered his head.

"So, even you have problems," a familiar voice said. Nick turned his head to see Knuckles. "What are you doing here, Knux?" Nick asked, rising to his feet. "I've been here all morning. To pay my respects," the echidna answered as he turned and pointed at a field of freshly dug graves, "and to beg them for forgiveness." They stood in silence for quite some time, not knowing what to say next. "If it's forgiveness you're looking for, I know where you can get it," Nick said. Knuckles raised a brow. He wasn't quite sure of what Nick was saying. "What?" he asked. "Follow me. Randy's probably already there," Nick said as he turned around and began to walk. Knuckles turned back to look at the fresh graves, sighed, and then turned back to follow Nick.

"What is this place?" Knuckles asked. "This is Church," Nick replied. Knuckles was looking around, trying to take in his surroundings. The windows were stained glass with images of people and angelic figures. There were several rows of chairs, leading up to an altar, which Randy knelt before. "What's he doing?" Knuckles asked. Nick pointed up to a large cross behind the altar. "He's praying for guidance," Nick answered. "From who?" Knuckles asked. "God," Nick replied. "I never believed in God. When I was younger, I always thought, 'If there was such a thing as God, then why am I all alone on this island?'. Besides, what's the point in religion, anyway?" Nick smiled and simply answered, "It gives us something to believe in. Something to hold on to. I believe in God because He is always with me, and He loves me no matter what I do." Knuckles sighed and muttered, "Doubt He could love someone like me." "That's what's so great about God. No matter what we do, He loves us. He's also willing to forgive us for whatever sins we commit. ANY sins, as long as we're truly sorry. What happened last week wasn't your own fault, but if you believe it was, just ask God to forgive you, and He will."

Knuckles was awestruck. "But that's crazy! Why would anyone forgive me for what I've done???" "Because He loves you...whether you believe it or not," Nick said, turning to Randy, who was still praying. He himself walked over and knelt next to Randy. Randy opened his right eye to glance over at Nick, then closed it again. Knuckles stood and watched them for about a minute, trying to process all of this in his mind. 'It makes no sense to forgive sins like that. Could such a merciful being actually exist?' he thought to himself. After another minute, he slowly walked over and knelt down next to Nick and Randy. As he did so, Nick couldn't help but smile.

Back at the mansion, everyone was watching the news, which was all about the mayor's evacuation plans. "Well, at least everything worked out," Amy said. "Yeah. The people tend to listen when invasions are involved," Ken commented. Sonic glanced over at Sally, who was sitting next to him and had been staring at him with fearful eyes for the past few minutes. He smiled at her and took her hand, causing her to smile. Everyone turned to the door as it opened, and watched Randy, Nick and Knuckles walk in. "Where were you guys?" Bunnie asked. Randy smiled and said, "Simply taking some pain off of our shoulders," as he glanced over at Knuckles, who very slightly smiled.

"I've been meaning to ask, where'd you guys get a name like 'The Ravagers'?" Rotor asked. "Well, it's a very funny story..." Luke began.

"How about...The Super Squad!" Luke suggested. "Yes, Luke. We wanna sound like a Saturday morning cartoon," Ken said sarcastically. They were all sitting in the living room, Todd with a notepad in his hand. The page he was on was divided in to halves. One side read 'Maybes', the other read 'No's'. The 'Maybes' was empty, and the 'No's' ran off the page. "How about...the Flaming-"Randy began to suggest, until he was cut off by, "Nothing to do with fire." "How about...the Revengers?" Todd suggested. They all stared at him. "Wha...???" Steve finally said. "Ya know, The Revengers! You commit crimes and we take our revenge!" Todd said dramatically. "That doesn't make too much sense," Li said. "Well, we can at least put it on the 'Maybe' list," Todd said. "Let me see the list," Nick said as Todd passed it to him. Nick glanced at it, then looked up at Todd. "You spelt...'Revengers' wrong," Nick said. Randy glanced up with a raised brow and very slowly said, "How the hell did you do that?" "I dunno. How'd I spell it?" Todd asked. "Ravagers," Nick said. Todd's head shot up. "Say that again," he asked. "Ravagers." "One mo' time." "Ravagers," Nick said, now smiling. They all looked at each other, grinning. "Wow. It just rolls off the tongue. It's like blah, only it comes out in a neater fashion!" Luke said. "That decides it, from now on, we are...The Ravagers!" Nick declared.

Everyone stared at Luke as he concluded the story. They then glanced at Todd and said together, "How'd you spell 'Revengers' wrong?" "Still don't know to this day," Todd answered. "It wasn't until months later, after we were all over the news, that we found out what a Ravager was," Luke said. "What happened?" Tails asked. "Well, it's a funny story," Luke began. "Ahh! Zees again!" Antoine moaned.

It was another typical day. Li and Zack were playing chess, Nick, Ken and Steve were reading, Randy was listening to his headphones, and Luke was playing a video game. Todd walked into the room carrying a dictionary. "Gonna beat that hi score!" Luke declared. "Guys, I became interested and decided to look up Ravager in the dictionary," Todd said. "Oh really, what does it mean," Randy said as he pulled off his headphones. "One who commits ravages," Todd answered. Randy grumbled and said, "Well, what does that mean?" "The act or practice of violently destroying; destruction." Everyone raised their brows as their jaws dropped and they stared into space, not moving at all. All was silent, until the TV beeped, "Game over." "DAMN IT!" Luke yelled, finally snapping out of it. "Uhh...Slap 'of Evil' at the end of it, and we should be fine," Nick said.

"We never did get to doing that," Steve said as he scratched his head. Someone chuckled, and soon everyone was laughing hysterically. Mighty, in his laughter, glanced over to see Knuckles chuckling as well. 'I guess those two really helped him out a bit,' he thought to himself. "I hate to break up this happy moment, but we need to get to the five block limit now to get ready for tonight," Todd said, causing the laughter and good humor to fade.

The five-block limit was a mess. There were G.U.N troops scurrying about everywhere, setting up gun turrets and other weapons. The President was a nervous wreck. "Those kids better show up after I made all these preparations," he muttered. "We did," Cap said as they walked out from an alley. "Everything's set. We blew up a ditch ten feet deep, fifteen deep wide in Rail Canyon. We should have no trouble with tanks now. That'll also slow down ground troops, too," DJ said. "Now are you sure you want to do this?" the President asked, "I could still have a G.U.N team assist you." Cap shook his head and said. "We've made our decision. Our plan should keep the casualty toll low. Time to rise to meet the challenge."

Sally was in tears with her arm around Sonic. "Please, don't do this!" she begged him. "Sal...I have to. I know what can happen, but if I don't do my part, then the entire plan could fall apart. Me and Freezie could grab all the front lines' weapons, giving us the edge. I have to do my part. Sal...I'm coming back for you. Don't worry," he said as he kissed her.

Knuckles sighed as he watched this interaction. He glanced over at Julie-Su, took a deep breath and sighed once more. "At least she doesn't have to worry about me," he said. "She still does," Espio said. "Y-yeah, Knux. Sh-she's still y-your friend," Ray said with a smile. "Yeah...a friend," Knuckles muttered. He stared at her for a moment, then began to walk over. She turned to him and looked at the ground, not sure of what to say to him. "Julie-Su...I just wanna say...I'm sorry if I embarrassed you last night. I was...out of it. Saying things without thinking first," he said. She looked up at him and smiled. "It's fine. Listen...don't get yourself killed out there," she said. "Sure," he answered. There was an uneasy silence. Neither of them knew what to say next. "Bye," Knuckles finally said as he turned around and left. "Bye," Julie-Su said to him as he left.

The President sighed as he looked out at his city. "What has brought us down to this level? Fighting for our lives, our very freedom? How have we sunk so?" he said. "You must have faith, Mr. President. Your people will not lose their city," Sally said, wiping the last tear from her eye. "But look at them! Look at my people! Their hearts hang heavy with grief and worry! My troops? Their courage hangs on by but a thread! And now I'm sending a group of young boys to fight my battles for me. How have I sunk so low?" the President asked. Vipes walked over to the President, went to his knees, and presented his sword. "Mr. President, we ninja live by the sword and die by the sword. Whether you would have it or not, I would fight for our city, as would the rest of my comrades." Vipes came back to his feet as the President stared at him. "You young men are a mindless, selfless lot. Thank you. You give me the faith I need. The faith that tells me...that this city will be peaceful once again," the President said.

"Ravagers, team meeting," Cap said as he and the other Ravagers walked into an alley. Out of interest and plain curiosity, the others stood by the corner to listen to the meeting. "I just want to remind you guys...that it's okay if you wanna back down. You're all as scared as I am, so it's no problem if you wanna leave," Cap said. "I speak for all of us when I say...that we're sticking together through this. Cap...Nick...do you remember what Gramps said before he died?" Swiper said. "Yeah. He said, 'Always be true to each other'," Cap muttered. "And we will. No matter what the price," Swiper said as he outstretched his arm. "No matter what the personal cost," Morph said as he put his hand in. "No matter how great the danger," Grim said, putting his hand in. "No matter how great the odds are against us," DJ said, putting his hand in. "No matter how powerful the adversary," Vipes said as he put his hand in. "No matter how hard it will be to go on," Freezie said, adding his hand in. "No matter what," F.C. said as he put his hand in and they all turned to Cap. "Always be true to each other," Cap said as he put his hand on top of the pile. "We are teammates, we are friends, we are brothers. Brothers are family, and family always sticks together. We fight together, we die together," Cap said.

Suddenly, their hands began to glow in a green energy. When they pulled their hands away, they noticed a letter on it. "If you notice, each of us has a letter on his hand, and the letters spell out the word 'RAVAGERS'," F.C. said. "Cool. Now...let's do this," Cap said with bold new confidence as they all nodded and walked towards the exit of the alley. Everyone hurried away as they exited the alley. "Wow. They've got the strongest bond I've ever seen," Bunnie whispered to Vector. "Yeah. Those dudes are really tight," Vector whispered back.

Everyone said their final good byes as the heroes walked down the deserted streets. "Fire a salute," the President said to his lieutenant. They were surprised when they heard the crowds of civilians blocks away begin to cheer for them as G.U.N fired a salute for them. "After doing that for us, there's no way we can let them down now," Mighty said as they continued to walk down the cold, lonely streets.

Julie-Su slipped into an alley and watched as her friends left. Tails had been very quiet. He must be worried about losing Sonic. She sighed as they got farther and farther away until they disappeared. 'I may never see them again,' she thought to herself as a tear fell from her eye. 'They've all been so good to me...and even though Knux wasn't truthful...he was still my friend.' She leaned back against the wall as she looked up at the sky. Dark clouds were gathering, heading towards the horizon. It was quite symbolic actually. Two huge, dark forces would collide, with a slight glimmer of good in-between. She closed her eyes, not noticing the shadows moving on the wall behind her. She suddenly felt a cold shiver run down her spine. She opened her eye to see an arm slowly creeping out of the wall behind her. 'Oh no! It's one of those Shadow Legionnaires!' she thought to herself. She lunged forward, trying to escape and call for help, but a hand clamped over her mouth and pulled her back, smacking the back of her head against the wall and knocking her out.

Rouge thought she heard something in the alley behind her and slowly went to peek around the corner. When she did, she screamed. There was a menacing Shadow Legionnaire, standing over the unmoving form of Julie-Su. In knelt down next to her, threw its cloak over her, and they sank into the ground. "NO!" Rouge yelled as she ran after the moving shadow, which crept under a door. Rouge quickly kicked the door down and gasped when she looked inside. The lights were out in the room, and the room was one big blotted shadow. Sally, Antoine, Rotor, Tails, Bunnie and Amy ran over to her as she turned around panicking. "Rouge, what's wrong? Why'd you scream?" Tails asked. "Because the Dark Legion just captured Julie-Su!" Rouge yelled.

**Author's Note:** Cliffhanger!!! Sorry, but I have to leave you all in suspense for now. But don't worry, the conclusion of the Station Square Saga will be posted next weekend. So until then, you'll just have to lose sleep wondering what's gonna happen! MWA-HA-HA!!!...uhhh...sorry.


	7. AGAINST ALL ODDS

AGAINST ALL ODDS

**Author's Note:** I am SO sorry it took so long for me to post this! Word of advice: AP History...avoid it. It's WAY too much work. Anyway, enough of my complaining. Just so you know, in the last chapter when the origin of the name "The Ravagers" is revealed...well...it's true. Don't ask how, but I spelt Revengers wrong, cuz I did. And I thought of the Revengers when I was about 7, so don't think that I make up stupid names or somethin. And yes, I read Ravager in the dictionary not too long ago. I'm not changing it, so it's there to stay. Now that I've displayed my stupidity, here's the exciting conclusion!

There they stood. Fifteen heroes at the edge of a city. A city in peril. Behind them, the city lights began to gleam as the sun began to set in the horizon. In front of them, miles away at the end of the great Rail Canyon, a large, black mass moved towards them. "This reminds me of an ancient text I once read," F.C. said as they watched the swarm of Legionnaires in the distance. "Really? What was it?" Espio asked.

"And so the valiant heroes doth stand,

As a black plague swept across the land.

And although fear dwelt in their minds,

They would not let it be their confines.

Behind them stood their city, their home,

And for it they face this evil alone."

F.C. turned to Knuckles, then continued reciting,

"With them stood one hero of fiery red,

With an ancient helmet upon his head."

"Knux...that hat of yours is really old, right?" Mighty asked. Knuckles nodded, then returned his attention to F.C.

"All will fall to their knees and cower,

For this will be his darkest hour.

The red hero will be tempted by the dark lord,

And asked to join his evil horde.

And if the red hero is to be turned,

The heroes will die, and the city be burned.

But if not, and he does stand to fight,

His greatest enemy will be the light.

For even if the light is weak and narrow,

All it must do...is cast one shadow."

They all stood in silence, amazed by how much the old text related to their present situation. "Jeez. That really didn't lighten the moment at all. 'Just made things heavier," Vector mumbled. "Well it could be worse," Mighty said with a small smile, "It could be rai-" CRASH! Thunder boomed in the sky and the heavens opened upon them. They all stared into space for a moment, then shifted their eyes over at Mighty. "Uhh...I'll be...over there," Mighty said as he slowly sidestepped away.

"DJ, what're our odds?" Swiper asked. "Give me a sec for my suit to calculate it...well! It's not too bad. We got a 44 chance of victory if we use our strategy. If we're flawless, we could make it an even 50, then it's anybody's game," DJ said. "How many are there?" Sonic asked. "Computer, scan number of life forms ahead of us," DJ commanded. They heard a beeping sound as the number was being calculated, then a fizzing, crackling sound as the system overloaded. DJ shrugged and said, "Calculator's fried. Guess it's up to the old fashion way. One, two, three..."

Ten minutes later

"One thousand seven hundred and fifty one, one thousand seven hundred and fifty two-""You're just making up numbers, right?" Mighty asked. "Yep. I lost count at about two hundred," DJ replied. The sound of the Legion marching had become louder now. They could see the front lines very clearly now as the rain stopped pouring. "Looks like they're stopping," Grim said as the Legionnaire army came to a halt. "Get ready to rush 'em!" Cap growled as they got ready to charge.

"Fools! Do you honestly believe that you can overcome us with such a small force?" a familiar voice yelled. They looked up to see Dimitri standing on a hovercraft, floating proudly above his grand army. "Surrender now, and we will spare your lives!" Dimitri bellowed. "Screw you!" Knuckles bellowed back. "Knuckles! I am giving you a chance. Join the Legion! You belong here! The rest of the world will not accept you now. You hide your face in shame, along with the Guardian symbol. Your ancestors are ashamed of you, your friends frightened by you, your former allies loath you! Join me, and you will have your free will intact! I will not remove your brain and replace it with my own as I intended. You can use your awesome power so that we can rule this planet! You never had a real father, and my son has been dead for lifetimes now. Let me be the father to you that Locke never was!" Dimitri said into the loudspeaker. Knuckles lowered his head. Dimitri was right. The whole world hated him now. There was nowhere for him to go. But then he raised his head, glared up at Dimitri and yelled, "DIMITRI! THE DARK LEGION ENDS TODAY! IT ENDS NOW!" Dimitri frowned and said, "You fool. Die with the idiots you have befriended! ATTACK!"

With that command given, the Dark Legion army charged, drawing their laser rifles. Knuckles let out a loud battle cry as he charged at the overwhelming force. The others joined in and charged behind him. "Freezie! Sonic! Get to work!" Cap yelled. "Sure thing!" Sonic shouted as he and Freezie dashed ahead at amazing speeds.

Raynor was proud to be in the front lines for this battle. He was ready to give his life for Dimitri. He wanted to kill the Guardian himself. He drew up his blaster to fire, only to find it wasn't there. He was not the only one in such a situation. The front lines were missing their weapons! Raynor looked up to see the Guardian's angry eyes, then his fist.

"Morph! I need a face-lift!" Vipes yelled. "Sure!" Morph yelled back. Morph rearranged the molecules of his head into bouncy rubber, Vipes jumped into the air above him, and launched off of Morph's head. "Dual kitana blade!" Vipes yelled as his sword glowed and became two identical kitanas. He then began to carve non-lethal wounds into the Legionnaires as he landed on the ground. The goal was to try to avoid killing any Legionnaires if at all possible. "This is the craziest Moche pit I've ever been in!" Swiper yelled as he dug one of his blades into the ground and used it to spin around like a top, kicking the Legionnaires around him. "Don't get distracted!" Mighty yelled as he tackled a Legionnaire. Grim swung his sickle around, burning the cybernetic implants of the unarmed Legionnaires. Cap performed a split-kick, then began to pound away at the Legionnaires attacking him. Espio, of course, could not be seen, and was beating up countless, stupefied Legionnaires.

Vector and Ray swung their tails and bashed two Legionnaires together. Morph turned into a puddle as some Legionnaires surrounded him. As they came closer, one fist for each of them popped up and uppercut them into the air. Sonic and Freezie did what they do around, punching dozens of Legionnaires as they went. DJ found himself being surrounded by about a dozen Legionnaires. "Okay. I'll admit you all have guts. Your big army against us. Those are impossible odds for you. So I'll give you a chance to surrender. You have until the count of...seven hundred and forty two! One!-"The Legionnaires charged him as he dropped to the ground and began spinning around, kicking them as they charged. "Is DJ break dancing?" Vector shouted. "They don't call me the Mecha DJ for nothin'!" DJ yelled proudly as he began to moonwalk, then spun around with a roundhouse, kicking two Legionnaires.

Knuckles swung punch after punch and kick after kick mercilessly upon his opponents. He would take all these guys out if that's what he needed to do to get to Dimitri. Cap looked to notice that they had taken out most of the front lines, and now the back lines were coming up with weapons. "F.C.! We need some breathing room!" he yelled as they began to become surrounded. F.C. had been using a staff to bash opponents that were up close, and fire spells at opponents that drew nearer. "Okay!" he yelled as he spun his staff above him and slammed it into the ground, creating a shock wave that sent the Legionnaires flying in all directions. The others watched as energy spheres protected them as Legionnaires flew through the air, taking out more as they came crashing to the ground. The Legionnaires not hit by the shock wave looked up at a huge dust cloud before them. Suddenly, fifteen silhouettes came rushing towards them. As they drew for their weapons, two of the silhouettes vanished as two dust trails burst at them. When they looked at their hands, their weapons were gone.

"That's it, boys! Let's keep this up!" Cap yelled as they came running through the smoke and began their second assault. As they were fighting, Dimitri looked on and smiled. "Their strategy is quite ingenious actually. Not bad for some teenage imbeciles. However, their efforts will be all in vain. We may not have out tanks to assist us, but our sheer numbers will overcome them as they grow tired. And if it comes down to it," Dimitri said with a malicious smile as he turned around to a Legionnaire standing next to Xenin, "Our secret weapon will finish the job." "Is it time, my lord?" the Legionnaire asked as he bowed. "No. Give them a few moments to gather false hope...then finish Knuckles and crush them!" Dimitri said.

Grim was too busy fighting off the surrounding Legionnaires to notice one come up with a flame-thrower. He turned around to see the Legionnaire pointing it at him. "Burn!" he yelled as he pulled the trigger, sending a burst of flame at Grim. "GRIM!!!" Ray yelled as he hovered overhead. The Legionnaire pointed up at Ray, but was startled when he heard a voice chuckling from where Grim was standing. The flames began to swirl, revealing Grim standing, unscorched. "My turn," Grim said as he snapped his fingers, igniting his thumb, held it before his mouthpiece, and blew, creating an instant flame-thrower. The Legionnaire screamed as his cloak burst into flames as he ran around. "What the hell did you just do?!?! This isn't a barbecue you pyromaniac!" Mighty yelled. "I control my flames! It's burning his cloak, but not him. However, he wont realize it until he goes into shock or there's nothing left to burn," Grim said as he used the same technique to set several Legionnaires aflame. "Yeah! Let's do it, y'all! We can do this!" Sonic yelled.

An evil grin curled on Dimitri's mouth. "They have had long enough. Time to show them our greatest weapon." Dimitri turned to the Legionnaire next to Xenin and said, "It is time. Go forth and destroy Knuckles! Your own power rivals his, but you...you have more control of it. It is time for you to take your revenge! G.U.N. and the government of Station Square are responsible for your cursed memories, your bleeding heart! Knuckles defends them, so he and his allies are too your enemies. Make him suffer! Make them suffer for what has happened to you!" Dimitri said. "Yes, my Lord," the Legionnaire said as he removed his cloak and jumped off the hovercraft. "Yes. You and Knuckles are very much alike. Your emotions are as easy to use as his were. Fool," said Dimitri as he sat down to observe.

Sonic was running, punching Legionnaires left and right, when something whizzed past him. Out of curiosity, he ran after it. 'What was that?' he thought to himself. Knuckles was pounding away when he suddenly saw Sonic come crashing to the ground before him. He scrambled to help Sonic get up, and when they looked up, they gasped at what they saw. Lightning struck behind the figure in front of them. It was a shadow. A shadow of Sonic. It was a black hedgehog, with red streaks in his quills, which curled up at the ends. His red eyes were filed with anger and hate. There was a white patch of fur on his chest, which matched his white gloves. He just stood there and stared at them, and they did the same.

"Sonic...get out of her, now," Knuckles said. Sonic shot a shocked look at him and said, "No way! This guy's mine!" Knuckles growled and shoved Sonic away. "This is no time for your stupid ego! This guy...this guy's somethin' else. He'd annihilate you," Knuckles said grimly as he glanced back at the black hedgehog. "Help the others. I'll take this," Knuckles said. Sonic looked at the hedgehog, then back at Knuckles. Knuckles had never seemed more serious in his entire life. Sonic nodded and ran off to assist the others.

"I knew we'd meet eventually...Shadow the Hedgehog," Knuckles said, standing calmly as the battle went on around them. "So Knuckles, you know who I am," Shadow said with a smile. "Dimitri couldn't keep you a secret forever. Especially after out minds were connected," Knuckles said. "So then you know everything," Shadow said. "You mean the fact that we're the same thing?" Knuckles asked. "Yes. Two sides of the same coin. Both of us are able to assimilate the power of a chaos emerald for our own purposes. We are the most powerful beings on this entire planet Mobius. Unfortunately, I have to kill you now," Shadow said. "Why? So Dimitri can use you?" Knuckles spat. "NO! So that innocent lives may be at last avenged!" Shadow yelled as he charged at Knuckles.

Shadow was fast. Dangerously fast. One false move would end this quickly. "Why are you doing this, Shadow?!?! Why are you fighting for Dimitri?!?! Do you think this will avenge Gerard and Maria?!?!" Knuckles yelled as he blocked a barrage of punches. "Do not speak their names! You do not have the right! They were peaceful people, working to change the world through science! They were trying to bring about the end of wars, an everlasting peace! Yet they were slain for their ideals! Is that right?!?!" Shadow yelled. "So is taking over Station Square and enslaving its people your sense of justice?" Knuckles shouted back. "I must determine for myself what true justice is!!!" Shadow yelled as he flashed a white light in a chaos transformation. "Now you face the wrath of Hyper Shadow!!!" he yelled as he charged at Knuckles, punching him into the air above the continuing battle. DJ looked up to see Hyper Shadow flying at Knuckles. "Jeez! That thing just tapped a chaos well! The locked file...that thing is Gerard Robotnik's ultimate life form!" DJ yelled.

Knuckles regained his balance and transformed into Hyper Knuckles to combat Hyper Shadow. The two erupted into a high-speed fight, crashing into each other as they flew across the sky. "If you want to avenge Maria and Gerard, then preserve their memory and search for peace!" Knuckles yelled as he blocked a kick. "Peace?!?! There is no such thing s peace! It is an illusion! An imaginary concept created by frail minds! It can never become a reality and you know this! Why then do you fight for it?!?!" Shadow shouted as he barely dodged a quick jab. "Because I hope! Hope that it can be achieved, maybe not in my lifetime, but perhaps in the next!" shouted Knuckles as he and Shadow became entangled in a grip lock.

"You are an even greater fool than Dimitri said you were! Hope! There is but one way to attain a sense of peace, and that is through a dictatorship! As long as there are individual nations, they will bicker and fight over selfish desires! Dimitri will lead the world as we know it into a golden age!" Shadow beckoned. They both growled as they tried to outmatch each other. Dimitri watched on with a smile on his face. "But that isn't peace! That's a world where Dimitri makes the rules and the people grovel before him!" Knuckles yelled. "If that is what will end wars between nations then so be it! How can peace at the expense of lives possibly be defined as peace?!?!" Shadow shouted as he head butted Knuckles, causing him to lean backwards. Shadow began a vicious assault, throwing punch after kick, blow after blow. Suddenly, Knuckles grabbed Shadow's leg and blasted him in the chest with chaos energy. When Shadow regained himself, Knuckles was sweating and panting. His wounds were healing at an accelerated rate, which made Shadow smile. "I see that you are not finished yet," Shadow said. Knuckles tightened his hat on his head as he said, "You'd better believe it! I'm just warmin' up!"


	8. CONCLUSIONS

CONCLUSIONS

"This isn't good! We can't find her anywhere!" Sally said. "It's all my fault! I should have saved her!" Rouge yelled. "Blaming yourself won't help her. We need to focus and figure out what to do," Rotor remarked. Rouge sighed and nodded. "Why would the Legion want Julie-Su?" Amy asked. "Leverage. In case Knux eva came close enough ta do some damage ta Dimitri," Bunnie explained to the young hedgehog. "Zen she iz een great danger!" Antoine said. "We need a plan. Oh, if only I could think of one. I mean listen to that! You can hear the battle from here! We could never-" Sally stopped mid-sentence at the sight of two glowing objects crashing into each other in the sky. "What in the world is that?" Rouge asked. "I don't know...but whatever it is can't be good," Rotor said as the two objects crashed together again, giving off a bright flash.

"You've been blinded from the truth, Shadow! Dimitri has been clouding your mind with lies!" Knuckles yelled. "It is you that has been blinded from the truth!" Shadow shouted back as they brought their battle over the harbor. "It is our purpose to fight! We have been born and raised knowing this, living tortured lives in the process! Isn't it true that you feel fulfilled as I do whenever you're engaged in battle???" Knuckles paused and stared at Shadow with a look of great surprise. "You and I are the same! We can only acknowledge our existence in combat!" Shadow yelled.

"Things aren't looking too good, Cap!" Grim yelled. Indeed, things were looking very bad. Time was beginning to wear them down, and the Legion just kept on coming. "We can't give up!" Cap yelled. "He's right! We gotta do whatever we-AHHH!" Mighty yelled as he grasped his side in pain and fell to the ground. "NO!" Cap yelled as he ran over and punched away the Legionnaires around the ailing armadillo. Mighty had been shot in the side. The laser had just skinned him, leaving a nasty burn. Cap took Mighty's arm and put it over his shoulder. "Hang on! I'm not losing anyone yet! No way!" Cap yelled as he kicked a Legionnaire away. Cap was keeping Legionnaires away from Mighty when Xenin stepped before him. "He's mine," Xenin said to the Legionnaires around him as he cracked his knuckles. Cap passed Mighty to Vector and began to pound away, only to discover that he wasn't actually hurting Xenin at all! Cap tried everything. Drunken-style, anime-style (see how many hits you can make per second), but Xenin swatted him away each time he tried. "Hate to do this to another guy, but you leave me no choice!" Cap yelled before sending a powerful kick under Xenin's groin. When Xenin didn't flinch, Cap took a step back and chuckled, "No way!" before being punched away again.

Cap spat some blood from his lip and smiled. "Fine then. Time for my specialty," he said as he balled his right hand into a fist and it began to glow. "What is that?" Xenin asked. "This is all thanks to my homie, DJ. Ya see, my body produces high levels of glucose, giving me access to more energy. I simply concentrate on my hand...the glove converts the glucose into ATP, or usable energy if you're as dumb as you look...and then I can unleash my KENZO FIST!" Cap yelled as he threw a punch at Xenin's chest, sending the robotic echidna flying. The legionnaires watched as Xenin crashed to the ground and looked back at Cap. "Anyone else?" Cap said as he braced himself to fight. Dimitri began to laugh. "Ah, yes! It will all be over very soon!" he said proudly, "Now if only I hadn't lost track of Shadow and Knuckles. I was looking forward to Knuckles' demise."

Knuckles and Shadow continued their fight, skimming the water as they fired balls of chaos energy at each other. "The Acorn family are fools! Throwing away weapons will not bring peace! Such pacifists will never realize that their goals are nothing more than empty promises! Illusions!" Shadow said as they both began to hover over the water, glaring at each other. "You're wrong, Shadow," Knuckles said. "Am I?!?! Chaos spear!" Shadow yelled as he focused chaos energy into the form of a spear and launched it at Knuckles. Knuckles saw it in time, but simply stood there and closed his eyes as it pierced his right shoulder, causing him to grunt in pain.

Shadow was astonished. He couldn't put together what had just happened. "Why-Why did you...???" "...If Dimitri wins, and he becomes ruler of Mobius, then there will be those who oppose him. There will always be resistance. Rebels, Freedom Fighters. It will be and endless struggle bringing about countless deaths, many of them innocents. Children will be born, as we have, with the soul purpose of opposing something. The hatred will be branded onto their souls. Over time, more and more fighters like us will be needed. The fighting and the dying will continue, until the will to fight is gone. But eventually, the hate will rise up again because of the memories of war, and history will repeat itself. Shadow...how many people need to live our tortured lives? Our tormented pasts?" Knuckles asked as the chaos spear fizzled away, leaving a growing bloodstained patch on Knuckles' shoulder. Shadow just stared, not answering. Knuckles closed his eyes and muttered, "How many times must I see Dimitri make me kill all those innocent people?" as a tear rolled down his face. Shadow's eyes widened as he slightly gasped. Knuckles lowered his head as he began to free-fall towards the sea below them. "I used to rely on the Master Emerald for answers, but my ancestors are too ashamed to answer me. Tell me, Shadow," Knuckles said before crashing into the ocean.

Hyper Shadow hovered there, watching the ripples in the water make larger and larger rings. He suddenly started to remember his last moments...

_Explosions. Gunfire. Shouting and yelling. Shadow looked around in confusion from his stasis cell. A beautiful woman ran in and began to punch in a code on the panel next to Shadow's stasis cell. She then looked at him and pressed her hand against the glass. He pressed his against hers as she said, "Shadow, fight for peace! Let them see the errors of their ways! Take the world down the right path!" "Maria..." he muttered just before the door opened behind her and he heard a gunshot. He gasped and looked at her lab coat, which was growing a crimson red blot on it. "Promise me..." she said just above a whisper as her hand slid down the glass and she pushed a button. There was rumbling, and then Shadow was being launched towards Mobius in a pod. He clenched his teeth and hands as tears flowed from his eyes. "MARIA!!!"_

"Would something like that have to happen to another?" Shadow said aloud as he turned back towards the battle. "Dimitri!" he growled as he flew in the direction of the continuing conflict.

"Grandfather, look who it is!" Kommisar said as she pushed Julie-Su forward. Her hands were clamped together behind her back, and her wrists were sore from trying to wiggle her hands free. "Ah! Julie-Su. I am sure you regret ever betraying us now," Dimitri said. Julie-Su gave him a sour look and said, "My friends will save me!" Dimitri grinned. "Oh, I doubt it."

Swiper took a heavy blow to the chest, but rolled with it so he could perform a backflip-kick. He gasped as he regained his footing and said, "Guys...I can't keep this up much longer!" "Stick together! Don't get separated and overwhelmed!" Cap shouted. Suddenly, a Legionnaire came behind him and Mighty pointing his blaster at them. Before the shot hit them, Vipes had deflected it with one of his kitana blades and punched the Legionnaire. Another came up laughing as he pointer a shotgun at Vipes. To his astonishment, It fell apart before he could pull the trigger. However, another came up, but with a bazooka. "Oh crap," Vipes said as the Legionnaire fired a rocket. Suddenly, a ball of chaos energy surrounded the rocket, sending it into the sky. "What?" Sonic said as Hyper Shadow landed next to them. "Hey! Aren't you with them?!?!" Espio asked. "I was, but Knuckles has opened my eyes to the truth, and the errors of my ways!" Shadow said before unleashing one last burst of chaos energy, giving the heroes some breathing room. However, he converted back to his normal form, pulling up his fists to fight.

Dimitri smiled yet again. "So, the fool has realize that I've used him like I did Knuckles! Well, it's too late! There's no way they can win now!" "Knuckles will beat you!" Julie-Su shouted, before receiving a slap across the face from Kommisar. "Shut up, skank! Your ex isn't gonna do anything!" She then knelt down next to Julie-Su and said, "Besides, why would he want to save such an ugly thing like you, anyway?" Julie-Su tried to ignore her twisted stepsister, but couldn't help but shed a tear. "I don't see Knuckles anywhere anyway. Perhaps Shadow finished him off before realizing the truth," Dimitri said. Julie-Su looked around desperately for signs of Knuckles, but he was nowhere in sight. "It will all end soon," Dimitri said. "My lord, the resistance has stopped fighting," a voice said over a small speaker on the dashboard. Dimitri smiled, "See?"

The guys were standing in a circle facing outward with Vector keeping Mighty up in the middle. "I got nothin' left in the ol' suit. Just enough for basic hand-to-hand tactics," DJ said as he panted. "This isn't going to be easy," Morph muttered as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "We can at least take out as many as we can before we go down. We fight together, we die together!" Grim yelled. "Hedgehog," Shadow said to Sonic, grabbing his attention, "Before we get ourselves killed, I wish to apologize for the punch earlier." Sonic smirked and said, "No prob," as the two hedgehogs turned back to their opponents. The silence was deafening. The only sounds were their panting, and their quickening heartbeats.

"DIMITRI!!!" a familiar voice yelled out. Everyone present looked up into the sky and saw Hyper Knuckles up in the sky. Every few seconds, his pink glow would flicker red, meaning he was low on power. "I am offering you one last chance to give up! All of you! What'll it be???" Knuckles yelled as he panted. Dimitri was worried for a moment, but smiled at the condition Knuckles was in. He could only keep his right eye open, and his arms were sagging. Then Dimitri noticed his nephew's right shoulder, dripping with blood..

"Do your worst! You can't possibly have enough power to defeat us! Go right ahead," Dimitri said confidently. "Fine by me," Knuckles said before launching a huge burst of chaos energy at the ground, creating a shock wave that sent a good portion of the remaining Legionnaires flying through the air. Dimitri was in shock. "WHAT?!?!" he yelled as Knuckles unleashed another blast, taking out the Legionnaires around his friends, who found themselves surrounded by protective chaos fields. "Where is he getting the energy???" Shadow asked. F.C. flinched when the answer hit him, 'He's using his life force!' Dimitri looked around him. A great deal of his army was gone now. The shock waves didn't kill the Legionnaires, but threw them around like rag dolls, crashing them into others who were hundreds of yards away from the blast radius. "My lord, the guardian has taken out two-thirds of the remaining troops! Another blast like that will finish us off for good!" the voice said again over the speaker before Dimitri smashed it in his rage. He looked up to see Knuckles, who sweating and panting even more than before, and pointing his shaking palm directly at him. "Stop it, Knuckles! I have Julie-Su down here!" Dimitri yelled. Knuckles' right eye widened as his left half opened. Dimitri smiled. "Now you get it. If you continue your attack, she will die before we are struck," the cybernetic echidna threatened. 'N-nooo..." Knuckles moaned as he slowly lowered his arm. Suddenly, the memories of Eclipse flashed in his mind. He knew what he had to do, no matter how hard it would be.

Julie-Su looked up at him, yelling, "KNUCKLES! Do it! Finish Dimitri!" She suddenly started hearing his voice in her head, saying, "Julie-Su...I am so, so sorry." She gasped as she looked up at him. Was he apologizing for lying to her, or for something else? "SHADOW!!!" Knuckles yelled as loud as he could as he fired a final shot at Dimitri. Shadow quickly sprung into action and began to dash at Dimitri's craft. Dimitri watched in horror as the blast drew nearer and nearer. "This isn't over, Knuckles! I swear I'll have my revenge! You will pay for this! You will suffer!!!" Dimitri yelled as he was disappeared in the blast.

Julie-Su opened her eyes to find that she was flung over Shadow's shoulder, away from the blast's radius. He set her down and broke her restraint, setting her free. She rubbed her wrists as she said, "Thanks, but why did you-""I couldn't allow the one he cares about the most to die," Shadow said. Sonic saw Knuckles falling limply to the ground, so he quickly dashed under him and caught him. "I gotcha, man! You okay?" He gasped when he noticed that Knuckles' breathing was slowing down. "Oh man! GUYS!" Sonic yelled as he laid Knuckles down and felt for a pulse. "Is he okay?" Freezie asked. "His pulse is really weak! His breathing is slowing down!" Sonic replied as he began to panic. "His aura is fading!" Vipes remarked in shock. "I don't know what we can do! I may be a mage, but there are so many arts of magic I don't know! I...I..." F.C. muttered.

Shadow quickly ran over with Julie-Su, who gasped when she saw Knuckles laying there, not breathing. "No...You were the only one who ever understood me! You are the only one who I can possibly relate to! I cannot allow you to die!" Shadow yelled as he knelt next to Knuckles. He looked up at F.C. and said, "You! Mage! I need as much energy as you can possibly give me!" F.C. would have been reluctant to this request, but Knuckles' life was on the line. He began to chant as Shadow began to glow. Shadow placed his two hands over Knuckles' chest and yelled, "CHAOS CONTROL!!!" Energy began to flow through Knuckles as he let out a loud gasp. "KNUX!" Mighty yelled as Knuckles began to open his eyes. He groaned as he looked around and asked, "Is...is it over?" they all smiled and nodded. Knuckles looked up at Shadow and smiled. "I see you changed your mind," he said. "You have helped me in a way I cannot ever repay. Do not even thank me," Shadow said. Knuckles chuckled and said, "Well, if you give me a hand up, I'll consider you debt-free," as he extended his hand to Shadow. Shadow couldn't help but smile as he grasped Knuckles' hand and helped him off the ground.

"Those explosions were huge! I'm afraid something terrible has happened," Sally said. "They're fine! I'm sure of it! Sonic's with them!" Tails said reassuringly. "Something's coming up on radar!" Rotor yelled. Everyone looked up to see a glowing ball of energy approaching them. The G.U.N. troops prepared for the worst as the object drew nearer. Suddenly, they heard a voice yelling, "STATION SQUARE!!!" They all looked in curiosity as it still drew nearer, until they could see the figures inside it. There were their fifteen friends, along with Julie-Su and a black hedgehog. Morph had morphed into a pair of large speakers with an attached microphone, which Cap was yelling into. "STATION SQUARE!!! WE HAVE VICTORY!!! THE CITY IS SAFE!!!" All at once, a thunderous cheer roared through the city. The G.U.N. troops, the civilians, everyone. It was over. The Dark Legion was defeated. The energy ball landed on the ground as everyone rushed to greet them. Sally threw her arms around Sonic who grunted as he caught her. "Hey Sal! Told ya I'd be back," he said as he kissed her. Rouge ran up to Julie-Su laughing and crying. "Oh my God! I though the Legion got you!" "They did, but everything worked out," she said as she glanced over at Knuckles and Shadow.

The Ravagers looked up to see the President walking towards them. "You did it! I never thought you would survive!" the President remarked as he shook everyone's hands. "We aren't ready to die yet, so that gave us a reason to push ourselves. Now if I remember correctly, we made a deal," Cap said as he put his hands together in front of him, "You got us." The President smiled as the rest of the Ravagers made the same gesture. He shook his head and sighed. "Foolish and honest. Very peculiar traits. I'm willing to let that slide for now," the President said with a large smile. "NICE!" DJ yelled, "I didn't really wanna go to prison and be in a cell with Grim. He'd kill me in one day." Everyone began to laugh. The danger had past. Now, it was time for rejoicing.


	9. GOODBYE, STATION SQUARE

GOOD-BYE, STATION SQUARE

Never before had Sonic seen so many people happy to see him. There they were, the Freedom Fighters, the Chaotix, and the Ravagers, standing on a wooden stage before the citizens of Station Square. They were going to be awarded for their brave actions against the Dark Legion. The President stepped up to a microphone and began to speak. "People of Station Square! Today, we are here to award and honor those that would have given their very lives for the freedom and survival of our fair city! These young individuals fought to overcome impossible odds, and have delivered us out of harm's way. Please, step forward," the President said to them as he motioned them to step up.

A man in a black suit stepped up next to the President, holding a box. He opened it to reveal several medals. "To our very own, the Ravagers!" the President announced as he gave each of them a medal, the crowd cheering wildly. "Our allies from the Kingdom of Acorn, the Freedom Fighters!" the President yelled as he presented each a metal as the crowds continued to cheer and clap. "Our allies from the Floating Island, the Chaotix!" Each of them, including Rouge, was given a metal as the crowds continued to go wild. "Odd..." the President said as he stared into the box, "There are two medals left." It was then that they all realized that Knuckles wasn't there. Neither was Shadow.

Not too far away, Shadow looked out at the horizon from atop a skyscraper, trying to clear his thoughts. So much had happened. He had been used by Dimitri to do terrible things. How could he have been so foolish? He closed his eyes and sighed. "So...What are you gonna do now, Shadow?" Knuckles asked. "Me? Heh. I have nothing to live for, now. Nowhere to go. I suppose I will wander the world...alone for the rest of my days. I do not belong anywhere now," Shadow said. He was surprised when Knuckles' hand patted his shoulder. "I think you're wrong. You belong with us...on the Floating Island," Knuckles said with a smile. At first, Shadow didn't know how to react. "You...you're offering me a place to stay? Why, might I ask?" Shadow requested. "Because I know what it's like not knowing where to go. Not feeling like you belong. And the Floating Island was a pretty good place for me to find where I belong. It'll be the same for you," Knuckles replied as he extended his hand, "Whadaya say?" Shadow took a moment to stare at his hand, then smiled as he shook Knuckles' hand. "I say, fine by me. Now, I believe we are wanted elsewhere, so...Chaos control," Shadow said as he revealed a glowing chaos emerald in his other hand.

There was a bright flash on the small stage, and when they all looked again, there were Knuckles and Shadow. "Nice of you guys to join us. What took ya?" Vector asked. "Nothin'. Just offering Shadow a place to stay on the Island," Knuckles replied. "Really? That's cool. We'll be able to get to know each other better," Mighty said. "Anyway, I present the two of you with these medals of honor. Shadow the Hedgehog, and Knuckles the Echidna." It happened so fast that it was creepy. The roaring crowd all at once abruptly stopped, leaving an erie silence in the air. Knuckles sighed as he looked around. Apparently, he was still hated by everyone in this, and every other city on Mobius. He looked at the President presenting the medal and said, "I can't accept that. Not after how I've wronged this city. These people. I don't deserve it."

Cap growled as he looked at Knuckles and then at the crowd. "How can you all be so stupid?!?! He made the same gamble we did! Why can't you just move on! Dimitri made him do it! Don't believe what the news tells you! It was all Dimitri!!!" Cap yelled out towards the crowd. He took off his medal and dropped it in the box it came out of. "Forgive me, Mr. President, but I can't wear this. It may be intended as a Medal of Honor, but before this crowd it's a medal of shame." One by one, the Ravagers removed their own medals and dropped them into the box. The Freedom Fighters and the Chaotix looked at each other and all copied Cap's noble gesture. "Please forgive us, Mr. President. I hope that this doesn't create any uneasiness in our alliances," Sally said. The President sighed and said, "Not at all. I had just hoped that things would have gone different." They all glanced at Knuckles, who had begun to walk away. "So do we," Sonic said.

They followed Knuckles to the crater, where he scooped up some of the ashes and sprinkled them from his hand. Grim walked over and stood next to him in silence, and said, "I thought you had gotten over this." Knuckles sighed and said, "No. It's still there. But...you and Nick have helped. A lot. If God can forgive me...maybe one day I'll finally be able to forgive myself." "We are all haunted by something. Nick is haunted by Gramps' death, you are haunted by Dimitri's treachery, and I...I am haunted by my father." Knuckles glanced over at him and removed his sunglasses. "What?" he asked. Grim sighed, then looked up into the sky. "I am from a different plane. The Bible calls this infernal plane Purgatory, but most cultures call it the Netherworld. It's the realm between this world and the Great Beyond. It is a dark and desolate place, unacquainted with beauty. My destiny is to inherit this land from my father, the king of demons. My human mother tried to take me away from it, but she was killed not long after she took me to Station Square." Knuckles looked at Grim with awe and sorrow. Grim's burden must have been heavy, like his own. "So as you can see, we all have our ghosts. So we must band together to overcome them, lest we become consumed by them," Grim said. "Yeah..." Knuckles said with a heavy sigh as he looked back at the ground.

Soon after, everyone was packed and ready to leave. There they stood, the Freedom Fighters, the Chaotix, and the Ravagers, all in silence. "So...I guess this is goodbye," Swiper said. "Yeah. I guess so," Espio replied. Cap smiled and said, "Listen, it's been real. I mean, we've done so much in so little time. We've completed a search-and-rescue mission, got to go driving around in the van and the jet, took down the Dark Legion once and for all...and most important, we made some really good friends." "Yeah, so if you ever need us, drop us a line," DJ said, holding his hand up next to his ear as if he were holding a phone. "Right. We got your frequency, and you got ours. So if we need it, we'll call you," Sally said. "You'll...drop us a line," DJ said, wiggling his phone-hand next to his ear. "We'll...drop you a line," Sally said. "Now you got it, Sal," DJ remarked.

Grim and Cap both walked up to Knuckles, who said, "Thanks you two...for everything." "Thank you for believing in us. We have something we want you to have," Cap said as Grim held his hand out before Knuckles. Knuckles stretched out his hand and Grim dropped a small, golden crucifix on a chain. "It's a reminder that He is always with you," Grim said. Knuckles looked down at his hand, then up at them. "Guys...I...I really don't know what to say. You've done so much to help me...and I've done basically nothing for you." Cap and Grim both chuckled and Cap said, "You've given us hope that there are others like us in the world that are willing to do anything to fight the good fight. That gives us the will to go on." Knuckles smiled at he shook both of their hands. "We'll meet again," Grim said. "Yeah. We will," Knuckles replied. After a tearful goodbye to their good friends, the Ravagers, they began their journey home. During the trip, they talked about the things that they did during their stay in Station Square, and wondered what had been happening back home.

King Acorn had been working endlessly during the past few days. He had to provide aid and relief services to Cat Country and Downunda, he had to begin plans to rebuild what was destroyed by Eclipse, and in his spare time, he worried about his daughter and her friends. They had only been gone for a few days, but he was still nervous. Dimitri was treacherous, and who knows what he would do to them if they were captured. He sighed as he pushed the papers on his desk aside and looked out the window. 'Where are you kids?' he thought to himself. He squinted his eyes when he saw something approaching in the distance, and when it came into view, a large smile grew on his face and he hurried out of the room.

A large crowd had gathered to meet them as they exited the ship. They king sighed when he saw that there was nobody missing. In fact, there was a black hedgehog with them. "Sally!" the king yelled as she ran over and threw her arms around her father. "Is everything alright? What happened? How-" "Everything's fine, Daddy," Sally said with a smile. "I'm just so glad you're all safe," the King said as he glanced over at Knuckles and walked over to him. "So, young Guardian, what became of Dimitri?" the King asked. Knuckles reached into his pocket and pulled out a burnt black patch. On it was a red 'DL'. Knuckles held it before the king and dropped it onto the ground. "The Legion is dead...so is Dimitri," Knuckles said. "So all is well?" the King asked. Knuckles sighed and nodded his head, "No. All that doesn't take away what I've done. Dimitri is the last life I'll ever take. No more," Knuckles said as he lowered his head, "Right now, I just wanna go home."

Home had never seemed more comfortable. The Floating Island was still a jewel to behold as you approached it. They had ditched their street clothes from Station Square and were back to their old fashion statements. The city was still suffering from the aftermath of the explosion, but for the most part things had gotten back to normal. However, as Knuckles walked down the street with his friends, he could feel the citizens glaring at him. They were his own people. He was their protector. And now they despised him with every fiber of their being. The Chaotix had to go find work, Rouge needed to talk to her landlord about a possible apartment for Shadow, and Knuckles had to go check in with the Brotherhood, so Julie-Su decided to head back to her apartment and get some much needed rest. It was pretty late when she got to her apartment, so she decided to try turning on the TV and looking for a movie. "Crap. 'click' Saw it. 'click' Infomercials. 'Click' Jeez, there's nothing on. Nothing to do." The door rang, so she shut off the TV and went to answer it.

When she opened the door, there was Knuckles, wearing his hat, looking a bit nervous. "Knuckles?" she asked. "Uh...Hi, Julie-Su. Um...is this a bad time?" he asked her. "No, no. I...just wasn't expecting you" "Well...it's kind of a special occasion, so..." There was a silence for a moment. "So what?" Julie-Su asked. "Well...happy birthday," Knuckles said as he pulled out a bouquet of flowers from behind him. Julie-Su was in complete shock. She wasn't quite sure how to respond. "How...how did you...???" "Well, when my mind was connected to Dimitri's, I got to see in his head...and he happened to know his great-granddaughter's birthday," Knuckles replied. Julie-Su was almost in tears. This was something she never ever expected, especially from him after what happened between them. "Knuckles...thank you. You...have no idea what this means to me. This is so special," she said. "I only wish I could have made it more special, but I already messed that up," he said as he lowered his head in shame. "Listen...I...I'm not really 'boyfriend material'. There's just too much I keep a secret. This may be hard for you to believe after what's happened, but if you ever need someone to talk to...you can talk to me," he said with a reassuring smile. Once again, she had no idea how to react. "I...I do believe you." Knuckles smiled and said, "Good. Well...I gotta go. The Brotherhood will be mad that I ditched them, and I still gotta see my mom. I kinda told Rouge about your B-day, so she's gonna swing by a bit later on and take you out somewhere to have fun." "Do you...wanna come with us?" Julie-Su asked. Knuckles' eyes widened slightly, but said, "No. I really can't. Thanks for the offer though. Anyway...happy birthday." "Thank you so much," Julie-Su said as she clutched the bouquet tightly.

He closed the door and left, leaving her alone. She sat down on her sofa, setting the bouquet beside her. The flowers were beautiful. She finally noticed a card stuck in the flowers, so she pulled it out and opened it. Inside of it, it read:

Julie-Su,

This is gonna seem really corny, so please don't laugh. I just wanted to let you know just how truly special you are. There was something about you that made you different from everyone else. Perhaps it's your free spirit, or maybe how determined you are. Maybe it's that you're very outgoing, or that you're so friendly. If not any of those, it's because of how beautiful you are. I never said it to your face, but you are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I was stupid to ever push you away from me, so it's my loss, and not yours. All you've lost is someone that could never be truthful with you. Someone that could never admit how he felt right to your face. I just hope that one day you can forgive me for being such a jerk. Just remember though, if you ever need me, I will always be there for you. I wasn't there before, but I will be there as a friend. Best wishes and happy birthday.

Your friend,

Knuckles

That was it. The dam broke. Tears began to pour from her eyes as she began to cry uncontrollably. She quickly threw her face into a pillow and continued to cry. He had done so much. The flowers, the card, giving her a birthday, saving her life for crying out loud! She had been so selfish. All he cared about was her, and all she could think about was the one mistake that he made. She felt so ashamed.

Rouge had just walked up to knock on the door when she heard crying from inside the apartment. She found that the door was unlocked and let herself in to see Julie-Su crying into a pillow on her sofa. "Julie-Su, what's wrong?" Rouge asked as she sat next down to her and put her arm around Julie-Su. "Kn-kn..." She couldn't even say his name, because when she tried, she began to cry all over again. "Knuckles? What about Knuckles?" Rouge asked as she noticed the bouquet, "Oh. I guess he brought these. Wow, they're beautiful!" "N-not as-as m-m-much as th-this-s," Julie-Su sobbed as she handed Rouge the card and continued crying. Rouge read the card and was amazed. "Wow. He really spilled his guts. So why are you so upset?" Rouge asked again. "I...I don't even know," Julie-Su said through her sobs. "Well...could it be that...maybe you wanna be with him again?" Rouge suggested. "I...I...yes. Yes I do," Julie-Su said as she still continued to cry. "Well then why don't you tell him?" Rouge asked with a chuckle. "Because I've been so selfish. I've only thought about how my feelings were hurt and not his. He had to juggle the whole Eclipse thing and us at the same time! I can't imagine how much that hurt him!" Julie-Su said. "Well let me tell you something, you won't need to beg and plead him to take you back. He'll do it with open arms. All you have to do is tell him. That's all," Rouge said. "Y-You're right," Julie-Su said as she sniffed and whipped her tears away. "That's it,. It's all gonna be okay," Rouge said as she stood up with Julie-Su and gave her a friendly hug. "Now, let's go out and have some b-day fun! I know a great restaurant that you'll just love! While we eat, we can discuss your attack plan with Knuckles." Julie-Su smiled and returned the hug, and the two friends walked out the door, with new hopes for the future. However, they had no idea that things were about to go wrong. Very...very wrong.


End file.
